World Anthropologies: Disciplinary Transformations in Systems of Power (Wenner-Gren International Symposium Series) 1845201914, 9781845201913

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World Anthropologies

WENNER-GREN฀ INTERNATIONAL฀ SYMPOSIUM฀ SERIES .฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀.฀ Series฀Editor:฀Leslie฀C.฀Aiello,฀President,฀Wenner-Gren฀Foundation฀for฀ Anthropological฀Research,฀New฀York. ISSN:฀1475-536X Previous฀titles฀in฀this฀series: Anthropology฀Beyond฀Culture Edited฀by฀Richard฀G.฀Fox฀&฀Barbara฀J.฀King,฀2002 Property฀in฀Question:฀Value฀Transformation฀in฀the฀Global฀Economy Edited฀by฀Katherine฀Verdery฀&฀Caroline฀Humphrey,฀2004 Hearing฀Cultures:฀Essays฀on฀Sound,฀Listening฀and฀Modernity Edited฀by฀Veit฀Erlmann,฀2004 Embedding฀Ethics Edited฀by฀Lynn฀Meskell฀&฀Peter฀Pels,฀2005 World฀Anthropologies:฀Disciplinary฀Transformations฀within฀Systems฀of฀Power Edited฀by฀Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar,฀2006 Sensible฀Objects:฀Colonialisms,฀Museums฀and฀Material฀Culture Edited฀by฀Elizabeth฀Edwards,฀Chris฀Gosden฀and฀Ruth฀B.฀Phillips,฀ 2006 Since฀its฀inception฀in฀1941,฀the฀Wenner-Gren฀Foundation฀has฀convened฀ more฀than฀125฀international฀symposia฀on฀pressing฀issues฀in฀anthropology.฀These฀symposia฀affirm฀the฀worth฀of฀anthropology฀and฀its฀capacity฀ to฀address฀the฀nature฀of฀humankind฀from฀a฀wide฀variety฀of฀perspectives.฀ Each฀symposium฀brings฀together฀participants฀from฀around฀the฀world,฀ representing฀different฀theoretical฀disciplines฀and฀traditions,฀for฀a฀weeklong฀engagement฀on฀a฀specific฀issue.฀The฀Wenner-Gren฀International฀ Symposium฀Series฀was฀initiated฀in฀2000฀to฀ensure฀the฀publication฀and฀ distribution฀of฀the฀results฀of฀the฀foundation’s฀International฀Symposium฀ Program. Prior฀to฀this฀series,฀some฀landmark฀Wenner-Gren฀volumes฀include:฀Man’s฀ Role฀in฀Changing฀the฀Face฀of฀the฀Earth฀(1956),฀ed.฀William฀L.฀Thomas;฀Man฀ the฀Hunter฀(1968),฀eds฀Irv฀DeVore฀and฀Richard฀B.฀Lee;฀Cloth฀and฀Human฀ Experience฀(1989),฀eds฀Jane฀Schneider฀and฀Annette฀Weiner;฀and฀Tools,฀ Language฀and฀Cognition฀in฀Human฀Evolution฀(1993),฀eds฀Kathleen฀Gibson฀ and฀Tim฀Ingold.฀Reports฀on฀recent฀symposia฀and฀further฀information฀

World Anthropologies Disciplinary Transformations within Systems of Power

Edited by GUSTAVO LINS RIBEIRO AND ARTURO ESCOBAR

Oxford • New York

First฀published฀in฀2006฀by Berg Editorial฀offices: 1st฀Floor,฀Angel฀Court,฀81฀St฀Clements฀Street,฀Oxford,฀OX4฀1AW,฀UK 175฀Fifth฀Avenue,฀New฀York,฀NY฀10010,฀USA ©฀Wenner-Gren฀Foundation฀for฀Anthropological฀Research฀2006 All฀rights฀reserved. No฀part฀of฀this฀publication฀may฀be฀reproduced฀in฀any฀form or฀by฀any฀means฀without฀the฀written฀permission฀of฀Berg. Berg฀is฀the฀imprint฀of฀Oxford฀International฀Publishers฀Ltd.

Library฀of฀Congress฀Cataloguing-in-Publication฀Data World฀anthropologies฀:฀disciplinary฀transformations฀within฀systems฀of฀฀ power฀/฀edited฀by฀Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar. ฀ ฀ ฀ p.฀cm.฀–฀(Wenner-Gren฀international฀symposium฀series) ฀ ฀ Includes฀bibliographical฀references฀and฀index. ฀ ฀ ISBN-13:฀978-1-84520-191-3฀(pbk.) ฀ ฀ ISBN-10:฀1-84520-191-4฀(pbk.) ฀ ฀ ISBN-13:฀978-1-84520-190-6฀(cloth) ฀ ฀ ISBN-10:฀1-84520-190-6฀(cloth) ฀ 1.฀Anthropology–Philosophy.฀ 2.฀Anthropology–Methodology.฀ 3.฀Applied฀ anthropology–Philosophy.฀ 4.฀Applied฀anthropology–Methodology.฀ ฀ I.฀Ribeiro,฀Gustavo฀Lins.฀ II.฀Escobar,฀Arturo,฀1952–฀ III.฀Series:฀Wenner-Gren฀ international฀series. GN33.W67฀2006 301'.01–dc22 2005033219

British฀Library฀Cataloguing-in-Publication฀Data A฀catalogue฀record฀for฀this฀book฀is฀available฀from฀the฀British฀Library. ISBN-13฀ 978฀184520฀190฀6฀(Cloth) ฀ ISBN-10฀ 1฀84520฀190฀6฀(Cloth) ฀ ฀ ISBN-13฀ 978฀184520฀191฀3฀(Paper) ฀ ฀ ฀ ISBN-10฀ 1฀84520฀191฀4฀(Paper) Typeset฀by฀JS฀Typesetting฀Ltd,฀Porthcawl,฀Mid฀Glamorgan Printed฀in฀the฀United฀Kingdom฀by฀Biddles฀Ltd,฀King’s฀Lynn

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En฀memoria฀de฀Eduardo฀Archetti,฀compañero฀ incomparable฀y฀antropólogo฀extraordinaire

Contents

Preface฀ 1฀ ฀ ฀

World฀Anthropologies:฀Disciplinary฀Transformations฀ within฀Systems฀of฀Power Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar฀

viii

1

Part฀1:฀Transnationalism฀and฀State฀Power 2฀ ฀

Reshaping฀Anthropology:฀A฀View฀from฀Japan Shinji฀Yamashita฀

29

3฀ ฀ ฀

Transformations฀in฀Siberian฀Anthropology:฀An฀Insider’s฀ Perspective Nikolai฀Vakhtin฀

49

4฀ ฀ ฀ ฀

In฀Search฀of฀Anthropology฀in฀China:฀A฀Discipline฀Caught฀ in฀a฀Web฀of฀Nation฀Building,฀Socialist฀Capitalism,฀and฀ Globalization Josephine฀Smart฀

69

5฀ ฀

Mexican฀Anthropology’s฀Ongoing฀Search฀for฀Identity Esteban฀Krotz฀

87

Part฀2:฀Power฀and฀Hegemony฀in฀World฀Anthropologies 6฀ ฀ ฀

vi

How฀Many฀Centers฀and฀Peripheries฀in฀Anthropology?฀ A฀Critical฀View฀of฀France Eduardo฀P.฀Archetti฀

113

Contents฀ ฀ vii

฀ 7฀ The฀Production฀of฀Knowledge฀and฀the฀Production฀of฀ ฀ Hegemony:฀Anthropological฀Theory฀and฀Political฀ ฀ Struggles฀in฀Spain ฀ Susana฀Narotzky฀

133

฀ 8฀ Anthropology฀in฀a฀Postcolonial฀Africa:฀The฀Survival฀Debate ฀ Paul฀Nchoji฀Nkwi฀ 157 Part฀3:฀Epistemological,฀Sociological,฀and฀Disciplinary฀ Predicaments ฀ 9฀ Generating฀Nontrivial฀Knowledge฀in฀Awkward฀Situations:฀ ฀ Anthropology฀in฀the฀United฀Kingdom ฀ Eeva฀Berglund฀

181

10฀ The฀Production฀of฀Other฀Knowledges฀and฀Its฀Tensions:฀ ฀ From฀Andeanist฀Anthropology฀to฀Interculturalidad? ฀ Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena฀

201

11฀ A฀Time฀and฀Place฀beyond฀and฀of฀the฀Center:฀Australian฀ ฀ Anthropologies฀in฀the฀Process฀of฀Becoming ฀ Sandy฀Toussaint฀

225

12฀ Official฀Hegemony฀and฀Contesting฀Pluralisms ฀ Shiv฀Visvanathan฀

239

Part฀4:฀From฀Anthropology฀Today฀to฀World฀ Anthropologies 13฀ The฀Pictographics฀of฀Tristesse:฀An฀Anthropology฀of฀ ฀ Nation฀Building฀in฀the฀Tropics฀and฀Its฀Aftermath ฀ Otávio฀Velho฀

261

14฀ “World฀Anthropologies”:฀Questions ฀ Johannes฀Fabian฀

281

References฀

297

Index฀

335

Preface

T

his฀ book฀ is฀ the฀ outcome฀ of฀ an฀ International฀ Symposium฀ of฀ the฀ Wenner-Gren฀ Foundation฀ for฀ Anthropological฀ Research,฀ held฀ in฀ Pordenone,฀Italy,฀7–13฀March฀2003.฀It฀reflects฀a฀process฀of฀several฀years฀ involving฀ the฀ symposium฀ organizers฀ and฀ other฀ colleagues.฀ Between฀ 1992฀and฀1995,฀one฀of฀us,฀Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro,฀was฀a฀member฀of฀the฀ Advisory฀ Council฀ of฀ the฀ Wenner-Gren฀ Foundation.฀ This฀ service฀ left฀ him฀with฀the฀recognition฀that฀a฀broader฀knowledge฀of฀what฀had฀been฀ produced฀outside฀North฀Atlantic฀anthropologies฀was฀greatly฀needed.฀His฀ intention฀met฀with฀enthusiastic฀support฀from฀Sydel฀Silverman,฀president฀ of฀the฀foundation฀at฀the฀time,฀and฀Richard฀Fox,฀then฀editor฀of฀Current฀ Anthropology.฀To฀address฀this฀issue,฀he฀formulated฀a฀first฀proposal฀for฀ a฀symposium฀on฀the฀international฀dimensions฀of฀anthropology,฀to฀be฀ held฀in฀1996. The฀project,฀however,฀was฀to฀crystallize฀only฀several฀years฀later.฀In฀2000,฀ at฀the฀ninety-ninth฀annual฀meeting฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀ Association฀in฀San฀Francisco,฀Arturo฀Escobar฀described฀to฀Ribeiro฀the฀idea฀ of฀a฀“world฀anthropologies฀network”฀he฀was฀then฀beginning฀to฀develop฀ with฀Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena฀and฀Eduardo฀Restrepo฀at฀the฀University฀of฀ North฀Carolina–Chapel฀Hill.฀This฀conception฀closely฀matched฀Ribeiro’s฀ previous฀project.฀The฀two฀of฀us฀had฀been฀engaged฀in฀other฀collaborative฀ endeavors฀and฀decided฀to฀propose฀a฀symposium฀to฀Richard฀Fox,฀who฀ by฀then฀had฀become฀president฀of฀Wenner-Gren. Fox฀immediately฀supported฀the฀idea฀and฀encouraged฀us฀to฀go฀ahead฀ with฀the฀symposium.฀We฀are฀grateful฀for฀his฀support฀of฀a฀project฀aimed฀ at฀affecting฀our฀discipline฀on฀a฀global฀level.฀Without฀his฀encouragement฀ and฀critical฀participation,฀we฀would฀not฀have฀accomplished฀our฀goals.฀ We฀ want฀ to฀ thank฀ the฀ Wenner-Gren฀ Foundation฀ for฀ its฀ generous฀ support,฀and฀especially฀Laurie฀Obbink,฀without฀whose฀help฀and฀kind฀and฀ effective฀presence฀everything฀would฀have฀been฀much฀harder.฀We฀also฀ want฀to฀thank฀Verena฀Stolcke฀for฀her฀thoughtful฀and฀constructive฀role฀as฀

viii

Preface฀ ฀ ix

discussant฀during฀the฀symposium฀and฀Michal฀Osterweil,฀a฀PhD฀student฀at฀ UNC–Chapel฀Hill,฀for฀her฀careful฀assistance฀during฀both฀the฀symposium฀ in฀Italy฀and฀the฀final฀preparation฀of฀the฀book฀manuscript.฀Finally,฀we฀ express฀our฀deep฀gratitude฀to฀each฀of฀the฀symposium฀participants฀for฀ assuming฀the฀project฀with฀so฀much฀interest฀and฀commitment฀to฀the฀ collective฀idea. Parallel฀to฀our฀organizing฀the฀“World฀Anthropologies”฀symposium,฀we฀ became฀increasingly฀involved฀in฀organizing฀the฀World฀Anthropologies฀ Network฀(WAN),฀an฀experiment฀in฀global฀cooperation฀that฀has฀been฀ growing฀over฀the฀past฀few฀years.฀WAN฀has฀become฀an฀inestimable฀source฀ of฀inspiration฀for฀all฀of฀us฀who฀remained฀in฀close฀dialogue฀after฀the฀ symposium:฀the฀late฀Eduardo฀Archetti,฀Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena,฀Susana฀ Narotzky,฀Eduardo฀Restrepo,฀Sandy฀Toussaint,฀Shiv฀Visvanathan,฀and฀ many฀other฀colleagues,฀and฀our฀respective฀graduate฀students฀in฀Brasilia฀ and฀Chapel฀Hill.฀We฀believe฀our฀anthropological฀practices฀can฀be฀much฀ richer฀if฀we฀take฀into฀consideration฀the฀great฀variety฀of฀anthropological฀ perspectives฀currently฀extant฀worldwide.

Participants at the 2003 Wenner-Gren Symposium

Eduardo฀P.฀Archetti,฀University฀of฀Oslo Eeva฀Berglund,฀independent฀scholar,฀London Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena,฀University฀of฀California–Davis Arturo฀Escobar,฀University฀of฀North฀Carolina–Chapel฀Hill Johannes฀Fabian,฀University฀of฀Amsterdam Esteban฀Krotz,฀Universidad฀Autónoma฀de฀Yucatán Susana฀Narotzky,฀Universitat฀de฀Barcelona Paul฀Nchoji฀Nkwi,฀University฀of฀Yaoundé Michal฀Osterweil,฀University฀of฀North฀Carolina–Chapel฀Hill Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro,฀Universidade฀de฀Brasília Josephine฀Smart,฀University฀of฀Calgary Verena฀Stolcke,฀Universidad฀Autónoma฀de฀Barcelona Sandy฀Toussaint,฀University฀of฀Western฀Australia Nikolai฀Vakhtin,฀European฀University,฀St.฀Petersburg Otávio฀Velho,฀National฀Museum,฀Rio฀de฀Janeiro Shiv฀Visvanathan,฀Centre฀for฀the฀Study฀of฀Developing฀Societies,฀Delhi Shinji฀Yamashita,฀University฀of฀Tokyo

x

o n e

World Anthropologies Disciplinary Transformations within Systems of Power

Gustavo Lins Ribeiro and Arturo Escobar

I

n฀this฀book฀we฀explore฀the฀diversity฀of฀anthropologies฀being฀practiced฀ around฀the฀world฀in฀the฀early฀twenty-first฀century฀and฀the฀ways฀in฀which฀ the฀pluralizing฀potential฀of฀globalization฀might฀enable฀anthropologists฀ worldwide฀to฀benefit฀from฀this฀diversity.฀Some฀of฀the฀discipline’s฀most฀ fundamental฀ transformations฀ in฀ the฀ twentieth฀ century฀ were฀ due฀ to฀ changes฀in฀the฀subject฀position฀of฀its฀“object฀of฀study”฀par฀excellence— native฀groups฀all฀across฀the฀planet.฀After฀the฀various฀rounds฀of฀critique฀ in฀the฀field฀over฀the฀past฀decades,฀we฀are฀convinced฀that฀the฀present฀can฀ be฀another฀moment฀of฀reinvention฀of฀anthropology,฀this฀time฀mostly฀ linked฀to฀changes฀in฀the฀relationships฀among฀anthropologists฀located฀ in฀different฀parts฀of฀the฀world฀system.฀A฀smaller฀world฀has฀meant฀an฀ increase฀in฀international฀exchanges฀of฀knowledge.฀In฀consequence,฀we฀ are฀enthusiastic฀about฀the฀possibility฀of฀establishing฀new฀conditions฀ and฀terms฀of฀conversability฀among฀anthropologies฀on฀a฀global฀level.฀ We฀ intend฀ this฀ volume฀ as฀ a฀ contribution฀ to฀ the฀ making฀ of฀ a฀ new฀ transnational฀ community฀ of฀ anthropologists.฀ As฀ such,฀ it฀ is฀ part฀ of฀ a฀ larger฀endeavor฀that฀we฀call฀the฀“world฀anthropologies”฀project.1 We฀ see฀ a฀ tremendous฀ transformative฀ potential฀ in฀ embracing฀ this฀ project.฀ Whether฀ it฀ is฀ conceived฀ of฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ diversifying฀ anthropological฀ practices฀ while฀ maintaining฀ a฀ unified฀ sense฀ of฀ the฀ field฀ or฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ adumbrating฀ a฀ “post-anthropological฀ era”฀ in฀ which฀ the฀ idea฀of฀a฀single฀or฀universal฀anthropology฀is฀called฀into฀question,฀we฀ believe฀great฀gains฀are฀to฀be฀made฀by฀opening฀the฀discipline฀up฀to฀new฀ possibilities฀of฀dialogue฀and฀exchange฀among฀world฀anthropologies.฀

1

2฀ ฀ Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar

Doing฀so,฀however,฀requires฀significant฀epistemological฀and฀institutional฀ changes฀in฀current฀practices.฀It฀should฀be฀clear฀from฀the฀outset฀that฀any฀ inclusive฀and฀participatory฀movement฀that฀aims฀to฀increase฀diversity฀is฀ bound฀to฀disturb฀those฀who฀have฀benefited฀from฀its฀absence. Anthropologists฀have฀always฀been฀prone฀to฀internationalism,฀because฀ anthropological฀ research฀ in฀ many฀ places฀ has฀ often฀ meant฀ traveling฀ abroad,฀ and฀ anthropology฀ itself฀ developed฀ through฀ the฀ worldwide฀ dissemination฀and฀expansion฀of฀Western฀university฀systems.฀And฀ours฀ is฀not฀the฀first฀discussion฀of฀the฀discipline’s฀international฀dimension฀(see,฀ for฀instance,฀Cardoso฀de฀Oliveira฀2000;฀Fahim฀1982;฀Kroeber฀1953;฀and฀ issue฀47฀of฀Ethnos).฀The฀present฀endeavor฀is฀different฀in฀four฀main฀ways.฀ First,฀we฀believe฀that฀with฀globalization,฀heterodox฀opportunities฀have฀ opened฀to฀the฀academic฀world.฀Second,฀we฀believe฀that฀through฀concerted฀ political฀action,฀a฀more฀heteroglossic,฀democratic,฀and฀transnational฀ community฀of฀anthropologists฀can฀come฀into฀existence.฀Third,฀we฀write฀ from฀no฀particular฀national฀viewpoint.฀And฀fourth,฀we฀believe฀we฀can฀ understand฀the฀dominance฀of฀some฀styles฀of฀anthropology฀only฀if฀we฀ relate฀them฀to฀unequal฀power฀relations.฀Such฀a฀perspective฀may฀well฀ stem฀from฀our฀own฀locations฀and฀experiences฀within฀the฀academic฀world฀ system.฀Both฀of฀us฀carried฀out฀our฀doctoral฀studies฀in฀North฀American฀ universities.฀One฀of฀us,฀Escobar,฀has฀long฀worked฀in฀U.S.฀universities฀ while฀maintaining฀strong฀ties฀with฀Colombian฀anthropology;฀the฀other,฀ Ribeiro,฀has฀long฀worked฀in฀Brazilian฀universities฀while฀maintaining฀ strong฀ties฀with฀North฀American฀anthropology.

Changing฀World฀Systems:฀Anthropologies฀and฀ Diversity Applying฀the฀Wallersteinian฀notion฀of฀“world฀system”฀to฀the฀investigation฀of฀the฀character฀of฀the฀social฀sciences฀and฀the฀academy฀suggests฀ that฀these,฀too,฀are฀structured฀by฀power฀relations฀and฀by฀Eurocentric฀ capitalist฀expansion฀(Gulbenkian฀Commission฀1996).฀This฀geopolitical฀ and฀epistemological฀argument฀may฀be฀reflected,฀for฀instance,฀in฀notions฀ of฀“peripheral฀anthropologies”฀(Cardoso฀de฀Oliveira฀2000)฀and฀“anthropologies฀of฀the฀South”฀(Krotz฀1997).฀More฀recently,฀it฀has฀appeared฀in฀the฀ work฀of฀the฀Japanese฀anthropologist฀Takami฀Kuwayama,฀who,฀inspired฀ by฀ the฀ Swedish฀ anthropologist฀ Tomas฀ Gerholm’s฀ (1995)฀ notion฀ of฀ a฀ “world฀system฀of฀anthropology,”฀argued฀that฀the฀United฀States,฀Great฀ Britain,฀and,฀to฀a฀lesser฀extent,฀France฀constituted฀the฀core฀of฀such฀a฀ system:฀ “Even฀ though฀ there฀ are฀ internal฀ differences,฀ their฀ collective฀ power฀is฀such฀that฀other฀countries,฀including฀those฀in฀the฀rest฀of฀Europe,฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 3

have฀been฀relegated฀to฀the฀periphery”฀(Kuwayama฀2004a:฀9).฀He฀wrote฀ further: Simply฀ put,฀ the฀ world฀ system฀ of฀ anthropology฀ defines฀ the฀ politics฀ involved฀in฀the฀production,฀dissemination,฀and฀consumption฀of฀knowledge฀about฀other฀peoples฀and฀cultures.฀Influential฀scholars฀in฀the฀core฀ countries฀ are฀ in฀ a฀ position฀ to฀ decide฀ what฀ kinds฀ of฀ knowledge฀ should฀ be฀ given฀ authority฀ and฀ merit฀ attention.฀ The฀ peer-review฀ system฀ at฀ prestigious฀journals฀reinforces฀this฀structure.฀Thus,฀knowledge฀produced฀ in฀ the฀ periphery,฀ however฀ significant฀ and฀ valuable,฀ is฀ destined฀ to฀ be฀ buried฀locally฀unless฀it฀meets฀the฀standards฀and฀expectations฀of฀the฀core.฀ (2004:฀9–10)

Kuwayama฀was฀incredulous฀about฀explanations฀that฀posited฀a฀language฀ barrier฀as฀the฀main฀factor฀hindering฀the฀dissemination฀of฀knowledge฀ produced฀ in฀ the฀ periphery฀ (2004a:฀ 27–29).฀ Aware฀ of฀ the฀ problems฀ arising฀from฀dualistic฀readings,฀he฀recognized฀the฀complexity฀of฀centerperiphery฀ intra-฀ and฀ interrelations฀ and฀ the฀ existence฀ of฀ elites฀ in฀ the฀ periphery฀closely฀connected฀to฀those฀of฀the฀center฀(2004a:฀49–46). The฀world฀systems฀approach฀has฀recently฀been฀enriched฀by฀two฀other฀ important฀perspectives:฀those฀of฀the฀“geopolitics฀of฀knowledge”฀and฀ the฀ “provincializing฀ Europe”฀ projects.฀ The฀ geopolitics฀ of฀ knowledge฀ is฀a฀notion฀developed฀by฀Walter฀Mignolo฀(2000,฀2001,฀2002)฀as฀part฀ of฀a฀radical฀critique฀of฀Eurocentric฀readings฀of฀modernity฀on฀the฀basis฀ of฀the฀concepts฀of฀“border฀thinking”฀and฀“coloniality฀of฀power”฀(see฀ Escobar฀ 2004a฀ for฀ an฀ extended฀ presentation฀ of฀ this฀ perspective).฀ In฀ close฀dialogue฀with฀the฀Peruvian฀sociologist฀Aníbal฀Quijano฀and฀the฀ Argentinean฀philosopher฀Enrique฀Dussel฀(see,฀for฀instance,฀Quijano฀1993;฀ Dussel฀1993),฀Mignolo฀related฀economic฀geopolitics฀to฀the฀geopolitics฀of฀ knowledge฀in฀order฀to฀stress฀the฀idea฀that฀the฀locus฀of฀enunciation฀of฀the฀ disciplines฀is฀geopolitically฀marked.฀Eurocentrism฀can฀be฀transcended฀ only฀if฀we฀approach฀the฀modern฀colonial฀world฀system฀from฀the฀exterior,฀ that฀is,฀from฀the฀colonial฀difference฀(modernity’s฀hidden฀face).฀The฀result฀ of฀such฀an฀operation฀is฀the฀possibility฀of฀embracing฀epistemic฀diversity฀ as฀ a฀ universal฀ project—that฀ is,฀ embracing฀ something฀ we฀ might฀ call฀ “diversality,”฀a฀neologism฀that฀reflects฀a฀constructive฀tension฀between฀ anthropology฀as฀a฀universal฀and฀as฀a฀multiplicity. Whereas฀the฀world฀anthropologies฀project฀incorporates฀diversality฀as฀a฀ key฀notion฀for฀global฀cross-fertilization,฀we฀also฀associate฀our฀project฀with฀ Dipesh฀Chakrabarty’s฀attempt฀to฀“provincialize”฀Europe—that฀is,฀to฀show฀ that฀European฀thought฀and฀experience฀are฀particular฀and฀historically฀

4฀ ฀ Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar

located,฀not฀universal฀as฀is฀generally฀assumed.฀For฀Chakrabarty,฀“European฀thought฀is฀at฀once฀indispensable฀and฀inadequate฀in฀helping฀to฀ think฀through฀the฀experiences฀of฀political฀modernity฀in฀non-Western฀ nations”฀(2000:฀16).฀While฀transcending฀Eurocentric฀modernity฀is฀one฀ of฀his฀goals,฀he฀asserts฀that฀the฀project฀of฀provincializing฀Europe does฀not฀call฀for฀a฀simplistic,฀out-of-hand฀rejection฀of฀modernity,฀liberal฀ values,฀universals,฀science,฀reason,฀grand฀narratives,฀totalizing฀explanations,฀and฀so฀on฀.฀.฀.฀It฀cannot฀originate฀from฀the฀stance฀that฀the฀reason/ science/universals฀ that฀ help฀ define฀ Europe฀ as฀ the฀ modern฀ are฀ simply฀ “culture฀specific”฀and฀therefore฀belong฀only฀to฀the฀European฀cultures.฀For฀ the฀point฀is฀not฀that฀Enlightenment฀rationalism฀is฀always฀unreasonable฀ in฀itself,฀but฀rather฀a฀matter฀of฀documenting฀how฀.฀.฀.฀its฀“reason,”฀which฀ was฀not฀always฀self-evident฀to฀everyone,฀has฀been฀made฀to฀look฀obvious฀ far฀beyond฀the฀ground฀where฀it฀originated.฀(2000:฀42–43)

In฀his฀dialogical฀stance,฀Chakrabarty฀avoids฀a฀romantic,฀dualistic฀position,฀ because฀ he฀ recognizes฀ that฀ without฀ Enlightenment฀ universals฀ “there฀would฀be฀no฀social฀science฀that฀addresses฀issues฀of฀modern฀social฀ justice”฀(2000:฀5).฀However,฀he฀also฀underscores฀the฀fact฀that฀in฀a฀world฀ of฀globalized฀scholarship,฀the฀translation฀of฀a฀multiplicity฀of฀forms฀of฀ understanding฀life฀into฀universalist฀European฀categories฀is฀problematical฀ (2000:฀17). These฀ debates฀ inform฀ our฀ understanding฀ of฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ and฀resonate฀throughout฀the฀present฀volume.฀They฀also฀place฀us฀immediately฀within฀fields฀of฀global฀power,฀that฀is,฀in฀spaces฀shaped฀by฀ unequal฀exchanges฀between฀hegemonic฀and฀nonhegemonic฀centers.฀ In฀ this฀ connection,฀ we฀ see฀ the฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ project฀ as฀ one฀ of฀ establishing฀ and฀ consolidating฀ new฀ modes฀ of฀ relating฀ among฀ different฀anthropologies,฀modes฀that฀will฀result฀in฀the฀enrichment฀of฀ theory฀beyond฀what฀is฀possible฀in฀the฀present฀ossified฀structure฀of฀the฀ anthropological฀world฀system,฀which฀hinders฀more฀complex฀forms฀of฀ cross-fertilization. As฀many฀of฀the฀contributors฀to฀this฀volume฀make฀clear,฀ignorance฀ of฀the฀magnitude,฀complexity,฀and฀diversity฀of฀international฀anthropological฀production฀is฀a฀common฀problem฀everywhere.฀How฀can฀anyone฀ make฀a฀complex฀synthesis฀of฀world฀anthropologies’฀contributions฀to฀ epistemology,฀theory,฀and฀methodology฀if฀we฀know฀so฀little฀about฀them?฀ Such฀ignorance฀is฀a฀crucial฀part฀of฀the฀current฀problem.฀This฀is฀why฀the฀ world฀anthropologies฀project฀also฀requires฀concrete฀initiatives฀(see฀note฀ 1)฀for฀fostering฀awareness฀of฀other฀trends฀in฀anthropological฀knowledge฀ and฀ for฀ granting฀ them฀ visibility.฀ Information฀ and฀ communication฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 5

technologies฀ today฀ enable฀ more฀ horizontal฀ communication฀ among฀ anthropologists฀worldwide฀and,฀consequently,฀more฀complex฀modes฀ of฀exchange. We฀should฀emphasize,฀however,฀that฀given฀its฀ultimate฀objectives,฀ the฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ project฀ is฀ more฀ accurately฀ seen฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ a฀ political฀ and฀ theoretical฀ stance฀ called฀ “interculturality”฀ than฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ multiculturalism.฀ Consider฀ Néstor฀ García฀ Canclini’s฀ (2004:฀ 15)฀statement฀on฀this฀issue: Multicultural฀conceptions฀admit฀the฀diversity฀of฀cultures,฀underscore฀their฀ differences,฀and฀propose฀relativist฀policies฀of฀respect฀that฀often฀reinforce฀ segregation.฀ Dissimilarly,฀ interculturality฀ refers฀ to฀ confrontation฀ and฀ entanglement,฀to฀what฀happens฀when฀groups฀establish฀relationships฀and฀ exchanges.฀ The฀ terms฀ suppose฀ two฀ [different]฀ modes฀ of฀ production฀ of฀ the฀social:฀multiculturality฀supposes฀acceptance฀of฀what฀is฀heterogeneous;฀ interculturality฀implies฀that฀those฀who฀are฀different฀are฀what฀they฀are฀in฀ relations฀of฀negotiations,฀conflicts฀and฀reciprocal฀loans.

In฀this฀connection,฀we฀advocate฀that฀all฀anthropologies฀(including,฀of฀ course,฀the฀hegemonic฀ones)฀are฀capable฀of฀dialogically฀contributing฀to฀ the฀construction฀of฀a฀more฀heteroglossic฀and฀transnational฀knowledge.฀ We฀do฀not฀claim฀that฀the฀pluralization฀of฀power,฀histories,฀and฀knowledge฀ is฀a฀goal฀in฀itself.฀Rather,฀we฀see฀it฀as฀a฀step฀toward฀a฀post-identitary฀ politics฀(Clifford฀1998)฀under฀the฀umbrella฀of฀diversality. It฀is฀not฀our฀intention฀to฀propose฀an฀abstract฀model฀of฀what฀world฀ anthropologies฀should฀be.฀Rather,฀we฀hope฀to฀foster฀debates฀and฀new฀ modes฀of฀interaction฀among฀scholars฀and฀all฀those฀interested฀in฀diversality฀ by฀suggesting฀political฀and฀social฀opportunities฀and฀means฀that฀might฀ enable฀more฀complex฀forms฀of฀global฀anthropological฀scholarship.฀Even฀ if฀we฀wanted฀to฀do฀so,฀it฀would฀be฀impossible฀to฀write฀a฀synthesis฀of฀the฀ plural฀contributions฀of฀unknown฀histories฀or฀of฀histories฀of฀collaborations฀ that฀are฀yet฀to฀happen.฀This฀book฀is฀one฀of฀the฀few฀works฀in฀English฀in฀ which฀a฀variety฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀is฀discussed฀(we฀say฀more฀about฀ language฀later).฀We฀need฀many฀other฀volumes฀to฀make฀fully฀visible฀to฀ global฀audiences฀the฀“anthropologies฀without฀history,”฀to฀use฀Esteban฀ Krotz’s฀ironic฀expression฀(1997:฀240),฀and฀what฀they฀might฀have฀to฀offer฀ in฀ the฀ construction฀ of฀ a฀ plural฀ anthropological฀ knowledge.฀ We฀ also฀ need฀to฀foster฀more฀heterodox฀initiatives฀of฀scholarly฀networking฀and฀ publishing฀(especially฀translations)฀if฀we฀are฀to฀benefit฀from฀the฀internal฀ global฀diversity฀of฀our฀own฀field฀of฀scholarship.฀In฀short,฀rather฀than฀ offering฀purely฀theoretical฀assumptions฀about฀how฀world฀anthropologies฀ might฀be,฀we฀argue฀that฀changes฀in฀the฀communicative฀practices฀and฀

6฀ ฀ Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar

modes฀of฀exchange฀among฀world฀anthropologists฀will฀result฀in฀changes฀ to฀and฀enrichment฀of฀the฀epistemological,฀theoretical,฀methodological,฀ and฀political฀horizons฀of฀the฀discipline. Ours฀is฀not฀a฀project฀of฀enriching฀hegemonic฀anthropologies฀but฀of฀ creating฀other฀environments฀for฀the฀(re)production฀of฀the฀discipline,฀ environments฀in฀which฀diversality฀might฀lead฀to฀a฀richer฀set฀of฀anthropological฀perspectives.฀Our฀critical฀standpoint฀on฀the฀monotony฀and฀ incompleteness฀of฀the฀current฀international฀anthropological฀landscape,฀ as฀it฀has฀come฀to฀be฀structured฀by฀hegemonic฀forces,฀stems฀from฀the฀ conviction฀that฀assuming฀their฀own฀diversity฀is฀a฀crucial฀(political,฀scholarly)฀strategy฀for฀anthropologies฀if฀they฀are฀to฀reproduce฀and฀enhance฀ themselves฀in฀a฀globalized฀world.฀Why฀should฀we฀cherish฀heterogeneity฀ and฀diversity฀more฀than฀homogeneity฀and฀uniformity฀in฀anthropology?฀ We฀should฀do฀so฀not฀only฀because฀we฀are฀professionally฀sensitive฀to฀ issues฀of฀cultural฀and฀political฀difference฀but฀also฀because,฀as฀scholars,฀ we฀know฀that฀diversity฀and฀creativity฀feed฀on฀each฀other,฀that฀a฀greater฀ pool฀of฀different฀perspectives฀represents฀greater฀capacity฀for฀invention฀ (see,฀for฀instance,฀Lévi-Strauss฀1987฀[1952]). The฀world฀anthropologies฀project฀thus฀aims฀at฀pluralizing฀the฀existing฀visions฀of฀anthropology฀at฀a฀juncture฀in฀which฀hegemonic,฀North฀ Atlantic–centric฀ discourses฀ about฀ difference฀ prevail.฀ It฀ stems฀ from฀ a฀ recognition฀that฀this฀is฀the฀right฀moment฀to฀discuss฀transformations฀ of฀the฀field฀worldwide.฀In฀sum,฀“world฀anthropologies,”฀as฀a฀concept,฀a฀ project,฀and฀a฀book,฀is฀a฀contribution฀to฀the฀articulation฀of฀diversified฀ anthropologies฀that฀are฀more฀aware฀of฀the฀social,฀epistemological,฀and฀ political฀conditions฀of฀their฀own฀production.฀Toward฀this฀end,฀our฀volume฀ has฀two฀interrelated฀goals:฀first,฀to฀examine฀critically฀the฀international฀ dissemination฀of฀anthropology฀as฀a฀changing฀set฀of฀Western฀discourses฀ and฀practices฀within฀and฀across฀national฀and฀international฀power฀fields;฀ and฀second,฀to฀contribute฀to฀the฀development฀of฀a฀plural฀landscape฀of฀ anthropologies฀that฀is฀both฀less฀shaped฀by฀metropolitan฀hegemonies฀ and฀more฀open฀to฀the฀heteroglossic฀potential฀of฀globalization.฀We฀also฀ see฀this฀effort฀as฀part฀of฀a฀critical฀anthropology฀of฀anthropology,฀one฀ that฀ decenters,฀ rehistoricizes,฀ and฀ pluralizes฀ what฀ has฀ been฀ taken฀ as฀ “anthropology”฀so฀far.

Disciplinary฀Transformations Tight฀connections฀always฀exist฀between฀world฀systems฀of฀power,฀the฀ development฀ of฀ social฀ theory,฀ and฀ changes฀ in฀ particular฀ disciplines฀ such฀as฀anthropology.฀The฀various฀critiques฀of฀the฀discipline฀of฀the฀past฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 7

few฀decades฀have฀made฀us฀newly฀aware฀of฀these฀interrelations.฀Since฀ its฀inception,฀anthropology฀has฀been฀deeply฀linked฀to฀the฀dynamics฀of฀ the฀world฀system,฀mediated฀by฀questions฀of฀colonialism,฀imperialism,฀ nation฀building,฀and฀the฀changing฀role฀of฀otherness฀in฀national฀and฀ international฀scenarios.฀As฀Krotz฀(1997)฀put฀it,฀anthropology฀reflects฀ regional,฀national,฀and฀international฀“structures฀of฀alterity.”฀The฀connection฀between฀anthropology฀and฀world฀politics฀applies฀to฀all฀anthropologies,฀often฀in฀contrasting฀ways,฀and฀it฀applies฀with฀particular฀poignancy฀ to฀ hegemonic฀ anthropologies.฀ By฀ hegemonic฀ anthropologies฀ we฀mean฀the฀set฀of฀discursive฀formations฀and฀institutional฀practices฀ associated฀with฀the฀normalization฀of฀academic฀anthropology฀chiefly฀ in฀the฀United฀States,฀the฀United฀Kingdom,฀and฀France฀(see฀Restrepo฀ and฀Escobar฀2005). The฀ crisis฀ of฀ hegemonic฀ anthropologies฀ after฀ the฀ 1960s,฀ brought฀ about฀ by฀ decolonization,฀ anti-imperialist฀ struggles,฀ the฀ civil฀ rights฀ movement,฀and฀the฀rise฀of฀Third฀World฀nationalisms,฀is฀well฀known.฀ Anthropology’s฀ “age฀ of฀ innocence”฀ (Wolf฀ 1974)฀ came฀ to฀ an฀ end฀ as฀ the฀ relationship฀ between฀ knowledge฀ and฀ power฀ became฀ more฀ explicit.฀ Critiques฀ of฀ anthropology฀ became฀ a฀ “literature฀ of฀ anguish”฀ (Ben-Ari฀1999:฀400),฀intensifying฀the฀ambivalence฀of฀anthropology’s฀ self-representation฀ (Wolf฀ and฀ Jorgensen฀ 1975)฀ as฀ either฀ an฀ ally฀ of฀ imperialism฀(Gough฀1975),฀a฀child฀of฀violence฀(Lévi-Strauss฀1966),฀or฀ a฀revolutionary฀field฀always฀ready฀to฀question฀Western฀claims฀to฀superiority฀(Diamond฀1964,฀quoted฀in฀Wolf฀and฀Jorgensen฀1975).฀In฀some฀ of฀ the฀ most฀ farsighted฀ ensuing฀ critiques,฀ one฀ finds฀ a฀ questioning฀ of฀ the฀epistemological,฀institutional,฀and฀political฀foundations฀of฀AngloAmerican฀anthropology.฀Some฀critics฀(see฀the฀contributions฀by฀Hymes,฀ Scholte,฀and฀Diamond฀in฀Hymes฀1974)฀even฀questioned฀the฀permanence฀ of฀“departmental฀anthropology”฀and฀opened฀a฀discussion฀about฀moving฀ toward฀a฀non-academic฀anthropological฀practice.฀Others฀argued฀for฀an฀ emancipatory฀anthropology฀that฀would฀begin฀by฀recognizing฀that฀all฀ anthropological฀ traditions฀ are฀ culturally฀ mediated฀ and฀ contextually฀ situated฀(Scholte฀1974).฀These฀efforts฀constituted฀a฀critical฀anthropology฀ of฀anthropology,฀and฀to฀this฀extent฀we฀may฀find฀in฀them฀the฀notion฀of฀ “world฀anthropologies”฀in฀statu฀nascendi.2 Later,฀other฀critics฀argued฀for฀a฀radical฀anthropological฀praxis฀sensitive฀ to฀ the฀ liberation฀ struggles฀ of฀ Third฀ World฀ peoples฀ (e.g.,฀ Harrison฀ 1991)฀or฀for฀the฀development฀of฀indigenous฀anthropology฀as฀a฀partial฀ corrective฀ to฀ anthropology’s฀ Eurocentrism฀ (e.g.,฀ Fahim฀ 1982).฀ Even฀ better฀known฀are฀the฀analyses฀and฀proposals฀of฀the฀1980s฀that฀focused฀ on฀ the฀ kinds฀ of฀ representations฀ embedded฀ in฀ realist฀ ethnographies,฀

8฀ ฀ Gustavo฀Lins฀Ribeiro฀and฀Arturo฀Escobar

with฀a฀concomitant฀call฀for฀reflexivity,฀a฀questioning฀of฀ethnographic฀ authority,฀and฀innovations฀in฀“writing฀culture”฀(Clifford฀and฀Marcus฀ 1986;฀ Marcus฀ and฀ Fischer฀ 1986).฀ This฀ “postmodern”฀ moment,฀ as฀ it฀ came฀to฀be฀labeled฀by฀some฀of฀its฀critics,฀influenced฀an฀entire฀critical฀ trend฀in฀regard฀to฀the฀prevailing฀objectivist,฀normative,฀and฀essentialist฀ conceptions฀ of฀ “culture,”฀ emphasizing,฀ conversely,฀ the฀ historicized,฀ polyphonic,฀political,฀and฀discursive฀character฀of฀any฀“cultural฀fact”฀ (e.g.,฀Comaroff฀and฀Comaroff฀1992;฀Dirks,฀Eley,฀and฀Ortner฀1994:฀3–4;฀ Gupta฀and฀Ferguson฀1997a;฀Page฀1988;฀Rosaldo฀1989). Seen฀in฀retrospect,฀these฀critiques฀had฀their฀limits.฀As฀the฀South฀African฀ anthropologist฀Archie฀Mafeje฀wrote฀(2001:฀54–66),฀they฀generally฀took฀ for฀granted฀the฀academic฀environment฀in฀which฀anthropology฀existed,฀ and฀they฀sheltered฀taken-for-granted฀academic฀practices฀(see฀also฀Fox฀ 1991;฀ Kant฀ de฀ Lima฀ 1992).฀ Most฀ critics฀ failed฀ to฀ see฀ the฀ role฀ of฀ the฀ colonized฀in฀decolonizing฀forms฀of฀knowledge,฀and฀they฀were฀largely฀ silent฀ about฀ nonhegemonic฀ anthropologies฀ (Mafeje฀ 2001).฀ Some฀ of฀ these฀drawbacks฀were฀addressed฀in฀feminist฀critiques฀of฀the฀book฀Writing฀ Culture,฀including฀the฀subsequent฀debate฀over฀feminist฀ethnography฀ (see,฀e.g.,฀Behar฀and฀Gordon฀1995;฀Gordon฀1988,฀1991;฀Knauft฀1996:฀ 219–48;฀Visweswaran฀1994).฀Participants฀in฀this฀trend฀rightly฀articulated฀ insights฀from฀earlier฀Marxist-feminist฀anthropology฀and฀the฀critique฀of฀ epistemology฀coming฀from฀feminist฀theory฀and฀so-called฀postmodern฀ anthropology฀ with฀ the฀ social฀ critique฀ coming฀ from฀ women฀ of฀ color฀ and฀Third฀World฀women.฀In฀addressing฀the฀question฀of฀“what฀it฀means฀ to฀be฀women฀writing฀culture,”฀they฀joined฀a฀critical฀epistemological฀ reflection—including฀ the฀ relationship฀ between฀ anthropology฀ and฀ feminism฀ (echoing฀ an฀ older฀ argument฀ by฀ Strathern฀ [1987])—with฀ a฀ political฀ reflection฀ on฀ power฀ relations฀ among฀ women.฀ These฀ were฀ important฀steps฀toward฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀perspective. Generally฀speaking,฀the฀question฀of฀the฀diversity฀of฀anthropologies฀has฀ not฀been฀adequately฀treated฀in฀previous฀critical฀analyses.฀International฀ cross-fertilization,฀for฀instance,฀has฀often฀involved฀a฀limited฀universe฀of฀ exchanges.฀Although฀the฀diversity฀of฀faculty฀members’฀and฀researchers’฀ nationalities฀may฀have฀increased฀in฀some฀locations฀(in฀the฀US฀academy,฀ for฀ instance),฀ this฀ increase฀ has฀ rarely฀ corresponded฀ to฀ an฀ active฀ incorporation฀of฀diverse฀anthropological฀productions฀and฀theories.฀This฀ is฀crucial฀because,฀as฀Krotz฀put฀it฀(2002:฀399),฀“in฀spite฀of฀the฀fact฀that฀ the฀main฀impulses฀for฀the฀production฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀ continue฀ to฀ come฀ from฀ the฀ countries฀ where฀ this฀ science฀ originated,฀ such฀impulses฀are฀also฀increasingly฀happening฀in฀places฀where฀those฀ who฀until฀recently฀were฀the฀favorite฀anthropological฀objects฀live.฀This฀

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requires฀the฀creation฀of฀new฀structures฀of฀knowledge฀production฀that฀ .฀.฀.฀do฀not฀subordinate฀cultural฀diversity฀to฀a฀[unique]฀model.”

Anthropologies฀and฀Transnationalism Most฀ anthropologies฀ have฀ always฀ been฀ transnational฀ to฀ a฀ greater฀ or฀ lesser฀extent.฀Nevertheless,฀as฀Eduardo฀Archetti฀put฀it฀in฀his฀contribution฀ to฀this฀volume,฀the฀consolidation฀of฀an฀“international฀anthropology”฀ has฀usually฀been฀an฀affair฀of฀the฀“center,”฀rather฀than฀of฀the฀peripheries.฀ Yet฀the฀different฀histories฀of฀world฀anthropologists’฀immersion฀in฀transnational฀processes—and฀the฀resulting฀disciplinary฀mutations—cannot฀ be฀easily฀accommodated฀in฀a฀simple฀narrative฀of฀imposition,฀diffusion,฀ borrowing,฀adaptation,฀or฀contestation.฀Transnational฀dynamics฀in฀the฀ world฀system฀have฀acted฀as฀both฀unifying฀and฀differentiating฀mechanisms,฀depending฀on฀many฀factors,฀from฀nation฀building฀and฀national฀ structures฀ of฀ alterity฀ to฀ institution฀ building฀ and฀ opportunities฀ for฀ exchanges.฀In฀what฀follows,฀we฀restrict฀our฀remarks฀to฀the฀most฀general฀ aspects฀of฀transnationalism฀in฀anthropology. Russia,฀Japan,฀China,฀and,฀in฀Latin฀America,฀Peru฀and฀Mexico฀offer฀ revealing฀cases฀of฀transnational฀dynamics฀in฀anthropology฀and฀their฀ relevance฀ for฀ world฀ anthropologies,฀ as฀ illustrated฀ in฀ the฀ chapters฀ in฀ this฀ volume฀ by฀ Nikolai฀ Vakhtin,฀ Shinji฀ Yamashita,฀ Josephine฀ Smart,฀ Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena,฀and฀Esteban฀Krotz,฀respectively.฀The฀famous฀Jesup฀ North฀Pacific฀expedition฀to฀Siberia฀(1897–1902),฀led฀by฀Franz฀Boas,฀is฀ an฀early฀and฀telling฀example฀of฀the฀role฀of฀transnational฀connections฀ in฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ a฀ national฀ anthropology.฀ During฀ this฀ period,฀ Western฀and฀Russian฀ethnology฀developed฀in฀tandem,฀reinforcing฀each฀ other.฀Then,฀from฀1917฀until฀1989,฀this฀transnational฀dimension฀was฀ significantly฀altered.฀What฀developed฀in฀Russia฀during฀the฀Soviet฀period฀ was฀an฀altogether฀different฀kind฀of฀anthropology,฀which฀had฀its฀avatars฀ with฀changing฀political฀regimes.฀After฀the฀collapse฀of฀the฀Soviet฀Union,฀ the฀arrival฀of฀relatively฀large฀numbers฀of฀foreign฀scholars฀to฀do฀fieldwork฀ in฀Siberia฀again฀changed฀many฀aspects฀of฀anthropological฀research,฀from฀ the฀objects฀of฀study฀to฀theoretical฀paradigms,฀affecting฀existing฀Siberian฀ anthropology฀in฀different฀ways.฀Rather฀than฀a฀purely฀Western฀set฀of฀ agendas฀asserting฀itself,฀these฀more฀diverse฀practices฀seem฀conducive฀ to฀greater฀anthropological฀plurality. There฀is฀perhaps฀no฀clearer฀case฀of฀the฀way฀in฀which฀empire,฀nation,฀and฀ transnationalism฀have฀intersected฀to฀foster฀a฀different฀anthropological฀ trajectory฀than฀that฀of฀Japan.฀In฀this฀development,฀there฀is฀no฀direct฀ link฀ between,฀ say,฀ an฀ international฀ influence฀ and฀ the฀ turn฀ taken฀ by฀

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anthropology.฀Despite฀being฀under฀the฀influence฀of฀Western฀hegemony,฀ Japanese฀anthropology฀developed฀into฀a฀distinctive฀entity฀in฀ways฀that฀ often฀ escaped฀ the฀ awareness฀ even฀ of฀ Western฀ anthropologists฀ working฀in฀Japan.฀Chinese฀anthropologies฀have฀seen฀much฀more฀limited฀ development,฀ but฀ they,฀ too,฀ are฀ marked฀ by฀ the฀ interaction฀ between฀ nationalism,฀transnationalism,฀and฀reactions฀to฀Western฀hegemony.฀A฀ principal฀factor฀has฀always฀been฀an฀ambivalence฀toward฀anthropology,฀ motivated฀by฀its฀Western฀origin.฀As฀Smart฀writes฀in฀chapter฀4,฀despite฀ increased฀internationalization฀of฀Chinese฀anthropology฀after฀the฀1980s,฀ no฀ linear฀ path฀ led฀ toward฀ its฀ integration฀ into฀ a฀ Western-dominated฀ discipline.฀On฀the฀contrary,฀the฀forces฀pushing฀toward฀indigenization฀ of฀the฀field฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀national฀priorities—specifically,฀the฀priority฀ accorded฀to฀rural฀development฀and฀ethnic฀minority฀studies—continue฀ to฀be฀important. Anthropologies฀in฀Mexico฀and฀Peru฀have฀been฀significantly฀influenced฀ by฀their฀connection฀with฀hegemonic฀anthropologies,฀particularly฀those฀ of฀the฀United฀States.฀Less฀well฀known฀is฀that฀they฀have฀also฀been฀largely฀ shaped฀by฀networks฀that฀developed฀specifically฀out฀of฀Latin฀American฀ experiences.฀The฀sizable฀presence฀of฀indigenous฀peoples,฀strong฀nationbuilding฀projects,฀and฀persistent฀debates฀over฀race฀and฀culture฀in฀both฀ countries฀enabled฀national฀and฀transnational฀institutional฀developments฀ that฀greatly฀conditioned฀their฀anthropologies.฀As฀de฀la฀Cadena฀shows,฀one฀ of฀the฀most฀formative฀elements฀was฀the฀articulation฀since฀the฀1920s฀of฀an฀ inter-American฀network฀of฀intellectuals,฀with฀its฀most฀important฀hubs฀in฀ Peru฀and฀Mexico,฀gathered฀around฀an฀anti-imperialist,฀Indo-American฀ or฀ indigenista฀ project฀ built฀ on฀ shared฀ pre-Columbian฀ and฀ Hispanic฀ pasts.฀ The฀ intersections฀ between฀ this฀ network฀ and฀ North฀ American฀ and฀French฀anthropologies฀were฀complex฀but฀not฀inconsequential฀for฀ all฀parties—for฀instance,฀there฀was฀a฀tacking฀back฀and฀forth฀between฀ Latin฀American฀notions฀of฀mestizaje฀and฀North฀American฀theories฀of฀ “acculturation.”฀ A฀ different฀ rendition฀ of฀ the฀ histories฀ of฀ these฀ two฀ Latin฀American฀anthropologies฀indicates฀that฀although฀they฀certainly฀ borrowed฀ and฀ adapted฀ notions฀ from฀ their฀ hegemonic฀ counterparts,฀ they฀had฀moments฀of฀autonomy,฀creativity,฀and฀independence—that฀is,฀ moments฀of฀being฀“world฀anthropologies.”฀With฀their฀radical฀agendas,฀ today’s฀ inter-American฀ networks฀ of฀ indigenous฀ politics฀ are฀ posing฀ questions฀ for฀ a฀ politics฀ of฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ perhaps฀ of฀ greater฀ relevance฀than฀those฀arising฀from฀the฀centers. Kirin฀Narayan’s฀formulation฀that฀anthropologists฀are฀best฀seen฀today฀ “in฀ terms฀ of฀ shifting฀ identifications฀ amid฀ a฀ field฀ of฀ interpenetrating฀ communities฀ and฀ power฀ relations”฀ (1993:฀ 671)฀ is฀ well฀ supported฀ by฀

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the฀ cases฀ discussed฀ in฀ this฀ book.฀ Some฀ of฀ them฀ show฀ that฀ although฀ anthropologies฀have฀always฀been฀prone฀to฀transnationalism,฀in฀the฀past฀ they฀have฀been฀unable฀to฀tap฀the฀vast฀potential฀that฀the฀globalization฀ of฀the฀discipline฀has฀created.฀World฀anthropologies฀may฀thrive฀under฀ the฀conditions฀existing฀at฀present.฀We฀hope฀it฀will฀be฀increasingly฀clear฀ that฀ whether฀ one฀ is฀ talking฀ about฀ Russia,฀ Japan,฀ China,฀ Mexico,฀ or฀ Peru,฀what฀is฀at฀stake฀is฀less฀the฀maintenance฀of฀dichotomies฀such฀as฀ Western฀and฀non-Western฀or฀central฀and฀peripheral฀but,฀as฀Yamashita฀ puts฀ it,฀ the฀ consideration฀ and฀ creation฀ of฀ common฀ spaces฀ in฀ which฀ anthropologies฀have฀met฀and฀can฀meet฀in฀the฀future฀in฀order฀to฀foster฀ the฀pluralization฀of฀the฀discipline,฀even฀under฀the฀pressure฀of฀particular฀ hegemonies.฀Transnational฀networks฀and฀events฀along฀these฀lines฀can฀ become฀ important฀ elements฀ in฀ fostering฀ the฀ perspectives฀ of฀ world฀ anthropologies.

Uneven฀Relations:฀Inverted฀Provincialisms฀and฀ Cosmopolitanisms The฀existence฀of฀anthropologies฀totally฀isolated฀from฀Western฀anthropologies฀is฀an฀impossibility฀even฀under฀authoritarian฀regimes,฀as฀again฀ the฀cases฀of฀China฀and฀Russia฀exemplify฀at฀various฀historical฀moments.฀ Even฀nativist฀perspectives฀have฀had฀to฀go฀through฀a฀process฀of฀validation฀ that฀is฀largely฀Western฀mediated.฀Conversely,฀the฀fact฀that฀anthropology฀ expanded฀from฀the฀North฀Atlantic฀to฀other฀corners฀of฀the฀world฀does฀not฀ mean฀it฀has฀been฀uninfluenced฀by฀its฀many฀developments฀elsewhere.฀We฀ agree฀with฀Yamashita฀(1998:฀5)฀that฀“if฀cultures฀travel,฀as฀James฀Clifford฀ (1992)฀puts฀it,฀anthropology฀travels฀too.฀Through฀traveling฀the฀world,฀ it฀ can฀ be฀ enriched฀ and฀ transformed฀ by฀ its฀ encounters฀ with฀ different฀ local฀ situations.”฀ But฀ it฀ is฀ also฀ true฀ that฀ there฀ are฀ different฀ travelers฀ and฀ways฀of฀traveling.฀Hierarchies฀of฀knowledge฀are฀predicated฀upon฀ hierarchies฀of฀social฀and฀political฀power.฀Furthermore,฀it฀is฀necessary฀to฀ keep฀in฀mind฀that฀the฀international฀circulation฀of฀ideas฀may฀“have฀the฀ effect฀of฀constructing฀and฀reinforcing฀inequality”฀(L’Estoile,฀Neiburg,฀ and฀Sigaud฀2002:฀23). Uneven฀exchange฀of฀information฀and฀anthropological฀diversity฀are฀often฀ depicted฀under฀different฀labels:฀central฀versus฀peripheral฀anthropologies฀ (Cardoso฀ de฀ Oliveira฀ 2000);฀ anthropologies฀ of฀ nation฀ building฀ and฀ of฀ empire฀ building฀ (Stocking฀ 1982);฀ hegemonic฀ and฀ nonhegemonic฀ anthropologies฀(Ribeiro฀and฀Escobar฀2003);฀anthropologies฀of฀the฀South฀ (Krotz฀1997),฀and฀so฀forth.฀Such฀classifications฀are฀helpful฀in฀thinking฀ about฀some฀characteristics฀of฀existing฀inequalities.฀Yet฀as฀Verena฀Stolcke฀

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remarked฀during฀our฀symposium,฀they฀are฀insufficient฀for฀understanding฀ the฀current฀transnational฀orders. This฀ is฀ especially฀ the฀ case฀ with฀ Stocking’s฀ well-known฀ distinction฀ between฀anthropologies฀of฀nation฀building฀and฀anthropologies฀of฀empire฀ building.฀This฀distinction฀implies฀that฀practitioners฀of฀so-called฀imperial฀ anthropologies฀prefer฀research฀abroad฀over฀research฀at฀“home.”฀The฀role฀ of฀anthropology฀in฀nation฀building฀is฀well฀known฀(for฀the฀Brazilian฀case,฀ see,฀for฀instance,฀Peirano฀1991a).฀Suffice฀it฀to฀say฀that฀anthropologists฀ often฀contribute฀to฀(re)creating฀ideologies฀of฀national฀unity฀or฀diversity,฀ anchored฀in฀academic฀authority,฀that฀are฀reflected฀in฀the฀educational฀ and฀cultural฀policies฀and฀interventions฀of฀states฀and฀nongovernmental฀ organizations.฀As฀Sandy฀Toussaint฀shows฀so฀vividly฀in฀chapter฀11,฀the฀ dilemmas฀Australian฀anthropologists฀face฀concerning฀their฀authority฀ in฀ Aboriginal฀ land฀ claims฀ exemplify฀ the฀ intricate฀ relations฀ between฀ anthropology,฀state฀apparatuses,฀and฀the฀discipline’s฀self-representation,฀ especially฀regarding฀its฀scientific฀status. Furthermore,฀the฀limits฀of฀this฀distinction฀may฀well฀be฀transcended฀ if฀we฀remember฀that฀in฀modern฀times,฀behind฀empire฀building฀there฀ has฀ always฀ been฀ a฀ nation-state.฀ Indeed,฀ anthropologies฀ of฀ empire฀ building฀ are฀ also฀ anthropologies฀ of฀ nation฀ building,฀ although฀ the฀ converse฀ is฀ not฀ necessarily฀ true.฀ Moreover,฀ there฀ are฀ cases฀ in฀ which฀ “national฀anthropologies”฀became฀internationalized฀without฀becoming฀ empire-building฀ anthropologies,฀ such฀ as฀ the฀ Australian,฀ Brazilian,฀ Canadian,฀and฀Mexican฀cases.฀Writing฀about฀Brazilian฀anthropology,฀the฀ Portuguese฀anthropologist฀João฀de฀Pina฀Cabral฀(2004:฀263)฀suggested฀a฀ fifth฀tradition,฀different฀from฀the฀American,฀British,฀French,฀and฀German฀ ones,฀a฀tradition฀“that฀identifies฀itself฀with฀none฀of฀the฀imperial฀projects฀ that฀have฀historically฀moved฀scientific฀development.”฀Eduardo฀Archetti,฀ in฀ this฀ volume,฀ also฀ shows฀ that฀ a฀ hegemonic฀ anthropology฀ such฀ as฀ that฀of฀France฀may฀be฀geared฀toward฀nation฀and฀empire฀building฀at฀the฀ same฀time.฀The฀Japanese฀example฀is฀interesting฀in฀that฀it฀shows฀that฀a฀ given฀anthropology฀may฀shift฀between฀being฀national฀and฀imperial— and฀indeed,฀today,฀post-imperial—over฀time,฀depending฀on฀external฀ constraints฀(Askew฀2003). This฀means฀that฀one฀can฀envision฀the฀development฀of฀postnational฀and฀ post-imperial฀anthropologies฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀key฀power฀reversals฀(Ribeiro฀ 2003).฀For฀the฀Latin฀American฀cases,฀given฀the฀need฀to฀“provincialize”฀ the฀ United฀ States,฀ one฀ might฀ envisage฀ research฀ projects฀ focused฀ on฀ North฀American฀subjects,฀especially฀those฀enacting฀ideologies฀of฀power฀ and฀prestige.฀It฀is฀time฀for฀Latin฀Americans฀to฀do฀research฀on฀the฀elites฀ of฀ the฀ North,฀ studying฀ “up”฀ in฀ more฀ ways฀ than฀ one฀ (Ribeiro฀ 2003,฀

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2005).฀From฀a฀different฀perspective,฀in฀addressing฀Stocking’s฀dichotomy,฀ Otávio฀Velho฀(chapter฀13)฀expresses฀concern฀over฀the฀possibility฀that฀ Stocking’s฀classification฀might฀lead฀to฀neo-orientalist฀perspectives฀that฀ posit฀“national฀anthropologies”฀as฀the฀source฀of฀sui฀generis฀alternatives฀ and฀knowledge.฀It฀is฀as฀if,฀given฀a฀certain฀crisis฀of฀imagination฀in฀the฀ “center,”฀the฀inventiveness฀of฀the฀“periphery”฀were฀the฀solution฀for฀a฀ new฀round฀of฀North฀Atlantic฀hegemony. Unlike฀exoticizing฀positions,฀our฀critique฀of฀the฀unequal฀exchanges฀ among฀anthropologies฀supposes฀going฀beyond฀existing฀power฀structures฀ to฀open฀the฀way฀for฀heteroglossic฀and฀dialogic฀cross-fertilizations฀stemming฀from฀the฀many฀other฀existing฀subject฀positions.฀At฀some฀levels,฀ there฀still฀exists฀an฀unmarked,฀normalized,฀and฀normalizing฀model฀of฀ anthropology฀that฀militates฀against฀this฀project฀and฀creates฀a฀sort฀of฀ asymmetrical฀ignorance฀(Chakrabarty฀2000).฀We฀see฀such฀asymmetry฀in฀ terms฀of฀the฀tension฀between฀what฀we฀call฀“metropolitan฀provincialism”฀ and฀“provincial฀cosmopolitanism.” Metropolitan฀provincialism฀is฀the฀ignorance฀that฀anthropologists฀in฀ hegemonic฀centers฀have฀of฀the฀knowledge฀production฀of฀practitioners฀ in฀nonhegemonic฀sites.฀Provincial฀cosmopolitanism฀refers฀to฀the฀often฀ exhaustive฀knowledge฀that฀people฀in฀nonhegemonic฀sites฀have฀of฀the฀ production฀of฀hegemonic฀centers.฀An฀expression฀of฀this฀asymmetrical฀ ignorance฀ is฀ the฀ fact฀ that฀ whereas฀ the฀ history฀ of฀ universal฀ (i.e.,฀ hegemonic)฀anthropologies฀is฀studied฀in฀depth฀in฀nonhegemonic฀sites,฀ the฀development฀of฀“anthropologies฀without฀history”฀is฀seldom฀taught฀ in฀ hegemonic฀ centers—and฀ often฀ not฀ even฀ in฀ those฀ anthropologies’฀ own฀ countries,฀ where฀ the฀ “classics”฀ include฀ only฀ works฀ by฀ foreign฀ anthropologists. Metropolitan฀ provincialism฀ and฀ provincial฀ cosmopolitanism฀ need฀ to฀be฀understood฀in฀relation฀to฀the฀language฀issue.฀In฀an฀unpublished฀ paper,฀ the฀ Brazilian฀ sociologist฀ Renato฀ Ortiz฀ (n.d.)฀ showed฀ how฀ the฀ English฀language฀framed฀sociological฀debates฀worldwide.฀He฀concluded฀ that฀“the฀more฀central฀a฀language฀is฀in฀the฀world฀market฀of฀linguistic฀ goods,฀the฀smaller฀the฀proportion฀of฀texts฀which฀are฀translated฀to฀it”฀ (p.฀27).฀In฀the฀United฀States฀and฀the฀United฀Kingdom,฀he฀found,฀fewer฀ than฀5฀percent฀of฀publications฀were฀translations฀from฀other฀languages,฀ while฀in฀France฀and฀Germany฀the฀figure฀was฀around฀12฀percent,฀and฀in฀ Spain฀and฀Italy฀it฀grew฀to฀20฀percent.฀This฀points฀to฀the฀sociolinguistic฀ basis฀of฀metropolitan฀provincialism. It฀is฀doubtless฀that฀English฀has฀become฀both฀a฀hegemonic฀language฀ and฀the฀main฀global฀means฀of฀intellectual฀communication.฀However,฀ this฀should฀not฀lead฀us฀to฀overlook฀the฀existence฀and฀important฀roles฀of฀

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regional฀language฀markets฀in,฀say,฀Spanish,฀Arabic,฀or฀Chinese.฀Linguistic฀ diversity฀is฀part฀of฀any฀world฀anthropologies฀project.฀As฀Rainer฀Enrique฀ Hamel฀(2003:฀24)฀warned,฀“scientific฀monolingualism฀might฀not฀only฀ deepen฀the฀existing฀inequalities฀in฀the฀access฀and฀diffusion฀of฀scientific฀ findings”฀but฀also฀threaten฀scientific฀creativity฀and฀conceptual฀diversity.฀ Hegemonic฀anthropologies฀often฀testify฀to฀this฀threat.฀Many฀cases฀bear฀ out฀ Hamel’s฀ observation฀ that฀ “most฀ authors฀ from฀ English-speaking฀ countries฀ and฀ their฀ former฀ colonies฀ who฀ write฀ about฀ the฀ world฀ as฀ a฀ whole฀do฀so฀without฀quoting฀a฀single฀non-English฀language฀text฀in฀their฀ vast฀bibliographies”฀(2003:฀20).฀This฀is฀a฀particularly฀pressing฀problem฀ in฀a฀discipline฀that฀praises฀diversity. Polyphony฀ in฀ anthropological฀ production฀ should฀ above฀ all฀ entail฀ the฀recognition฀of฀the฀sizable฀production฀of฀anthropological฀texts฀in฀ different฀parts฀of฀the฀world฀and฀the฀deliberate฀adoption฀of฀steps฀to฀remedy฀ existing฀imbalances.฀The฀translation฀of฀more฀works฀into฀English฀is฀a฀ necessary฀but฀insufficient฀step฀in฀gaining฀access฀to฀the฀global฀production฀ of฀anthropologists.฀We฀also฀need฀to฀promote฀the฀dissemination฀of฀the฀ works฀ of฀ nonmetropolitan฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ languages฀ other฀ than฀ English฀to฀further฀enhance฀horizontal฀exchanges.฀We฀need฀more฀heterodox฀ conversations฀ and฀ meetings,฀ channels฀ of฀ communication฀ that฀ can฀be฀meaningful฀and฀interesting฀to฀authors฀everywhere,฀in฀order฀to฀ construct฀and฀consolidate฀more฀heterogeneous฀professional฀networks฀ and฀projects.฀It฀is฀time฀to฀strive฀for฀polycentrism฀and฀heteroglossia฀in฀ lieu฀of฀monological฀hegemony.฀A฀world฀anthropologies฀perspective฀is฀ precisely฀about฀reworking฀existing฀divides฀without฀obliterating฀the฀real฀ differences฀that฀exist.

Epistemological฀and฀Disciplinary฀Predicaments The฀ social฀ and฀ institutional฀ contexts฀ within฀ which฀ anthropologists฀ operate฀ have฀ changed฀ significantly฀ over฀ the฀ past฀ two฀ decades฀ as฀ a฀ result฀of฀heightened฀transnationalism,฀neoliberal฀pressures,฀and฀rapid฀ globalization฀ (Berglund,฀ this฀ volume).฀ The฀ same฀ can฀ be฀ said฀ of฀ the฀ epistemological฀concerns฀that฀occupy฀anthropologists฀in฀many฀parts฀ of฀the฀world.฀The฀concept฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀has฀a฀special฀niche฀ for฀ questions฀ of฀ knowledge฀ and฀ alterity,฀ because฀ their฀ potential฀ for฀ triggering฀ animated฀ theoretical฀ and฀ political฀ reflection฀ continues฀ to฀ be฀great. Much฀ has฀ been฀ written,฀ for฀ instance,฀ about฀ the฀ relation฀ between฀ anthropology฀and฀colonialism.฀The฀various฀reactions฀of฀scholars฀outside฀ the฀Euro-American฀centers฀to฀anthropology’s฀universalist฀pretensions฀

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and฀ its฀ association฀ with฀ Eurocentrism฀ have฀ been฀ less฀ studied.฀ In฀ Africa,฀ this฀ issue฀ has฀ resulted฀ in฀ a฀ debate฀ over฀ the฀ need฀ for฀ African฀ knowledges฀ and฀ epistemologies.฀ With฀ more฀ intensity฀ than฀ in฀ India,฀ where฀anthropological฀debates฀took฀place฀in฀the฀context฀of฀postcolonial฀ discussions฀ of฀ nation฀ building฀ (Visvanathan,฀ this฀ volume),฀ in฀ Africa฀ calls฀for฀native฀epistemologies฀were฀marred฀by฀the฀paradox,฀noted฀by฀ Mafeje฀ (2001),฀ that฀ there฀ is฀ nothing฀ more฀ Western฀ than฀ discussions฀ about฀epistemology.฀Otávio฀Velho฀suggests฀in฀his฀chapter฀that฀claims฀ to฀authenticity฀may฀be฀a฀kind฀of฀self-imposed฀orientalism฀and฀that฀the฀ absence฀of฀foreign฀scholars฀specialized฀in฀Brazil฀might฀have฀positively฀ contributed฀to฀hindering฀the฀development฀of฀nativist฀approaches฀in฀ that฀country.฀The฀question฀of฀alternative฀epistemologies,฀however,฀is฀ far฀from฀settled.฀For฀Shiv฀Visvanathan,฀it฀is฀imperative฀to฀recognize฀the฀ existence฀of฀a฀multiplicity฀of฀times,฀livelihoods,฀and฀epistemologies฀as฀ the฀basis฀of฀plural฀world฀anthropologies. So฀where฀does฀one฀start฀a฀discussion฀about฀epistemology?฀The฀farthest-฀ reaching฀arguments฀seem฀to฀place฀anthropology฀within฀the฀structures฀ of฀modernity.฀Anthropology,฀it฀has฀been฀said,฀is฀an฀integral฀part฀of฀the฀ modern฀intellectual฀division฀of฀labor฀among฀the฀academic฀disciplines,฀ which฀accorded฀it฀the฀“savage฀slot”฀(Trouillot฀1991)—that฀is,฀the฀role฀ of฀studying฀the฀“primitive,”฀or฀what฀was฀not฀“the฀West.”฀This฀division฀฀ of฀ labor฀ is฀ a฀ fundamental฀ feature฀ of฀ the฀ modern฀ episteme฀ (in฀ the฀ Foucauldian฀ sense,฀ that฀ is,฀ referring฀ to฀ the฀ existence฀ of฀ a฀ structure฀ that฀ determines฀ the฀ character฀ of฀ knowledge฀ without฀ the฀ knowers’฀ consciousness฀of฀it).฀Modern฀knowledge฀is฀based฀in฀logocentrism,฀that฀ is,฀the฀belief฀in฀logical฀truth฀as฀the฀only฀valid฀foundation฀for฀a฀rational฀ knowledge฀of฀the฀world—a฀world฀made฀up฀of฀knowable฀and฀orderable฀ things฀ (Heidegger฀ 1977;฀ Vattimo฀ 1991).฀ Modern฀ knowledge฀ is฀ also฀ Eurocentric฀in฀that฀it฀suppresses฀and฀subalternizes฀the฀knowledges฀of฀ those฀seen฀as฀lying฀outside฀the฀European฀totality฀(what฀Mignolo฀[2000]฀ and฀others฀have฀referred฀to฀as฀the฀“coloniality฀of฀knowledge”).฀It฀is฀in฀ this฀ broad฀ context฀ that฀ we฀ can฀ most฀ fruitfully฀ locate฀ discussions฀ of฀ epistemology฀and,฀more฀radically,฀epistemic฀difference฀in฀relation฀to฀ world฀anthropologies. Questions฀about฀knowledge฀are฀questions฀about฀modernity.฀To฀put฀it฀ bluntly,฀hegemonic฀anthropologies,฀like฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀social฀sciences,฀ have฀ fallen฀ into฀ the฀ trap฀ of฀ believing฀ that฀ there฀ is฀ nothing฀ outside฀ modernity.฀ It฀ is฀ all฀ very฀ well฀ to฀ show฀ how฀ modernity฀ is฀ negotiated,฀ contested,฀and฀hybridized฀on฀the฀ground฀throughout฀the฀world,฀as฀many฀ ethnographers฀based฀in฀“center”฀countries฀have฀done฀with฀eloquence;฀ yet฀ these฀ ethnographies฀ still฀ shelter฀ the฀ idea฀ that฀ modernity฀ is฀ an฀

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inescapable฀ universal฀ (Kahn฀ 2001).฀ This฀ might฀ well฀ be฀ the฀ case,฀ but฀ there฀are฀clues฀in฀the฀practices฀of฀many฀social฀actors฀that฀caution฀against฀ this฀widely฀held฀assertion฀(Escobar฀2004a,฀2004b;฀Mignolo฀2000).฀We฀are฀ not฀talking฀only฀about฀the฀many฀cases฀of฀indigenous฀knowledge—for฀ instance,฀ in฀ fields฀ such฀ as฀ collective฀ land฀ claims,฀ ethnic฀ rights,฀ and฀ biodiversity฀conservation฀or฀in฀the฀rich฀debates฀over฀intellectual฀property฀ (e.g.,฀Strathern฀1999a).฀In฀these฀cases,฀as฀Toussaint฀shows฀in฀her฀analysis฀ of฀Aboriginal฀land฀claims฀in฀Australia,฀anthropologists฀are฀confronted฀ not฀only฀with฀multiple฀knowledges฀produced฀in฀multiple฀places฀and฀ going฀in฀multiple฀directions,฀up฀and฀down฀the฀power฀hierarchy,฀but฀ also฀ with฀ issues฀ of฀ translation฀ and฀ (in)commensurability฀ that฀ are฀ most฀relevantly฀seen฀in฀epistemological฀and฀epistemic฀terms.฀Today,฀ as฀ Toussaint฀ demonstrates,฀ these฀ issues฀ are฀ pushing฀ anthropologists฀ in฀unprecedented฀directions,฀which฀we฀associate฀with฀possibilities฀for฀ world฀anthropologies. Debates฀ over฀ interculturality฀ among฀ members฀ of฀ indigenous฀ and฀ ethnic฀social฀movements฀and฀certain฀institutions฀(e.g.,฀UNESCO)฀bring฀ questions฀of฀translation฀and฀(in)commensurability฀to฀the฀fore.฀When,฀in฀ the฀1960s,฀the฀Peruvian฀writer฀cum฀anthropologist฀José฀María฀Arguedas฀ articulated฀a฀practice฀that฀was฀at฀once฀modern฀and฀nonmodern,฀Western฀ and฀not,฀which฀he฀refused฀to฀see฀as฀“hybrid,”฀he฀was฀engaged฀in฀a฀multiple฀ ontologism฀fueled฀by฀magic฀and฀reason฀alike,฀and฀he฀made฀an฀early฀ statement฀on฀this฀problematic฀(de฀la฀Cadena,฀this฀volume).฀In฀peripheries,฀ where฀the฀hold฀of฀logocentrism฀is฀weaker฀than฀in฀the฀center,฀there฀is฀ more฀room฀for฀plural฀epistemological-political฀debates;฀at฀this฀level,฀for฀ instance,฀liberal฀multiculturalism฀in฀the฀United฀States฀finds฀a฀counterpart฀ in฀radical฀interculturality฀in฀the฀Andes.฀The฀articulation฀of฀modernity฀ and฀indigeneity฀that฀the฀notion฀of฀interculturality฀presupposes,฀as฀de฀ la฀Cadena฀writes,฀poses฀an฀ontological฀and฀epistemic฀challenge฀to฀the฀ assumption฀of฀an฀all-determining฀modernity.฀Intercultural฀subjectivities฀ might฀not฀necessarily฀be฀on฀their฀final฀and฀definitive฀journey฀toward฀ modernity,฀ even฀ if฀ they฀ might฀ find฀ sources฀ of฀ value฀ and฀ even฀ allies฀ in฀ many฀ of฀ modernity’s฀ features.฀ This฀ is฀ why,฀ for฀ many฀ indigenous฀ and฀ ethnic฀ movements,฀ the฀ creation฀ of฀ alternative฀ knowledges฀ and฀ even฀alternative฀centers฀of฀knowledge฀(like฀the฀innovative฀Intercultural฀ University฀in฀Quito,฀established฀by฀members฀of฀indigenous฀movements)฀ is฀an฀important฀aspect฀of฀their฀struggle.฀At฀stake฀here฀is฀the฀premise฀ that฀the฀world฀is฀populated฀by฀a฀multiplicity฀of฀times,฀livelihoods,฀and฀ epistemologies;฀this฀seems฀to฀be฀clearer฀today฀to฀social฀actors฀engaged฀in฀ struggles฀for฀cultural฀difference฀than฀to฀many฀academics.฀As฀a฀dialogue฀of฀ cultures฀in฀contexts฀of฀power,฀interculturality฀presents฀anthropologists฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 17

with฀politically฀rich฀opportunities฀for฀epistemological฀engagement฀and฀ for฀practicing฀anthropologies฀in฀the฀plural.฀This฀notion฀also฀applies฀to฀ the฀multiple฀modernities฀within฀the฀West,฀as฀Eeva฀Berglund’s฀analysis฀ of฀the฀British฀case฀(chapter฀9)฀exemplifies. This฀does฀not฀mean฀that฀modernist฀epistemologies฀and฀politics฀based฀ on฀realist฀assumptions฀are฀irrelevant.฀Susana฀Narotzky฀forcefully฀states฀ in฀her฀chapter฀that฀it฀is฀impossible฀to฀do฀away฀completely฀with฀universals฀or฀to฀eschew฀unitary฀frameworks,฀in฀order฀for฀shared฀political฀ projects฀to฀take฀place.฀Yet฀at฀this฀level,฀the฀conditions฀for฀the฀politics฀ of฀epistemology฀and฀the฀epistemology฀of฀politics฀have฀also฀changed.฀ First,฀it฀is฀now฀accepted฀that฀there฀is฀a฀plurality฀of฀politically฀engaged฀ possibilities฀for฀knowledge฀production—that฀is,฀for฀projects฀of฀social฀ transformation฀against฀hegemonies฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀alternative฀orders฀ of฀knowledge.฀From฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀perspective,฀even฀notions฀ of฀political฀engagement฀within฀realist฀paradigms฀would฀challenge฀longestablished฀anthropological฀practices฀such฀as฀the฀objectification฀and฀ detachment฀characteristic฀of฀much฀participant฀observation.฀At฀the฀same฀ time,฀ this฀ perspective฀ would฀ elicit฀ notions฀ of฀ responsibility฀ that฀ go฀ beyond฀engagement฀during฀the฀field฀stay.฀Researchers฀working฀from฀a฀ world฀anthropologies฀perspective฀would฀consider฀an฀array฀of฀diverse฀ knowledges฀with฀diverse฀political฀agendas,฀all฀of฀them฀situated฀in฀their฀ respective฀processes฀of฀production. Cognitive฀pluralism฀has฀certainly฀existed฀throughout฀history,฀as฀Archetti฀ shows฀in฀the฀case฀of฀the฀French฀colonial฀anthropologist฀Michel฀Leiris฀ (see฀also฀Nugent’s฀discussion฀[2002]฀about฀the฀persistence฀of฀alternative฀ canons฀throughout฀the฀history฀of฀the฀discipline).฀Were฀this฀pluralism฀ to฀ become฀ more฀ prominent฀ today,฀ it฀ might฀ be฀ an฀ effective฀ antidote฀ against฀the฀most฀homogenizing฀forms฀of฀professionalization.

Anthropology฀Today฀and฀World฀Anthropologies Anthropology,฀as฀Visvanathan฀says฀in฀his฀chapter฀on฀India,฀is฀not฀only฀a฀ Foucauldian฀practice฀but฀also฀“a฀compendium฀of฀alternative฀dreams”—an฀ open-ended฀project฀of฀entertaining฀multiple฀possibilities฀for฀both฀itself฀ and฀the฀world.฀This฀statement฀applies฀to฀all฀anthropologies,฀to฀a฀greater฀ or฀lesser฀extent,฀and฀at฀various฀points฀in฀their฀variegated฀histories.฀All฀ anthropologies฀have฀had฀their฀dissenting฀figures,฀alternative฀knowledges,฀ failed฀experiments,฀and฀occasional฀epochs฀of฀creativity฀and฀revolt.฀It฀ could฀be฀said฀that฀in฀most฀times฀and฀most฀places,฀anthropology฀(in฀the฀ singular)฀has฀functioned฀within฀established฀bounds฀even฀if,฀as฀many฀ of฀ our฀ authors฀ contend,฀ the฀ histories฀ of฀ the฀ field฀ are฀ not฀ exhausted฀

18฀

Gustavo Lins Ribeiro and Arturo Escobar

by฀ scientific,฀ institutional,฀ or฀ market฀ logics.฀ But฀ it฀ is฀ in฀ moments฀ of฀ marginality,฀dissent,฀or฀daring฀creativity฀beyond฀those฀bounds—and฀ before฀such฀moments฀get฀domesticated฀or฀normalized—that฀we฀can฀see฀ more฀clearly฀elements฀of,฀and฀for,฀world฀anthropologies. To฀give฀an฀example,฀again฀from฀Visvanathan’s฀chapter,฀it฀is฀in฀the฀ rootedness,฀ eclecticism,฀ and฀ plural฀ imagination฀ of฀ the฀ development฀ anthropology฀of฀the฀Lucknow฀school—before฀it฀was฀defeated฀by฀the฀ anthropology฀ of฀ the฀ Delhi฀ School฀ of฀ Economics,฀ with฀ its฀ dreams฀ of฀ planned฀development฀after฀independence—that฀we฀find฀a฀plural฀landscape฀ of฀ anthropological฀ possibilities.฀ To฀ give฀ another฀ example,฀ in฀ treating฀the฀work฀of฀the฀French฀Indologist฀Louis฀Dumont฀as฀an฀open฀ text,฀whether฀in฀India,฀Norway,฀or฀Brazil,฀as฀several฀of฀the฀contributors฀ argue,฀practitioners฀moved฀in฀open-ended฀directions.฀In฀doing฀so,฀they฀ worked฀through฀unresolved฀predicaments฀or฀absences฀in฀the฀Dumontian฀ conceptualization. It฀may฀well฀be฀that฀the฀concept฀of฀“world฀anthropologies”—as฀distinct฀ from฀“international฀anthropology”—is฀a฀problematic฀for฀which฀we฀have฀ not฀yet฀found฀enough฀questions,฀if฀by฀this฀we฀mean฀the฀fuller฀emergence฀ of฀an฀anthropological฀space฀that฀operates฀as฀a฀multiplicity฀more฀than฀as฀ a฀single฀authoritative฀practice,฀a฀shared฀matrix,฀or฀a฀contested฀universal.฀ These฀issues฀are฀underscored฀in฀Johannes฀Fabian’s฀chapter.฀The฀questions฀ he฀asks฀about฀how฀world฀anthropologies฀might฀challenge฀the฀established฀ who,฀what,฀where,฀when,฀and฀how฀of฀the฀discipline฀are฀a฀place฀to฀start.฀ To฀this฀list฀we฀need฀to฀add฀the฀crucial฀“what฀for,”฀that฀is,฀the฀ethicopolitical฀question,฀What฀is฀anthropology฀for? We฀also฀need฀to฀learn฀to฀ask฀questions฀that฀arise฀from฀beyond฀the฀ regnant฀academic฀domain.฀The฀least฀we฀can฀say฀in฀this฀regard฀is฀that฀the฀ cultural-political฀actors฀from฀outside฀the฀center฀who฀have฀emerged฀over฀ the฀past฀two฀decades฀make฀it฀clear฀that฀they฀are฀producing฀knowledge฀ about฀cultural฀and฀social฀processes฀that฀must฀be฀taken฀seriously.3฀There฀is฀ little฀indication฀that฀hegemonic฀anthropologies฀are฀broaching฀this฀issue.฀ To฀begin฀with,฀as฀we฀know,฀anthropologists฀from฀the฀metropolises฀have฀ rarely฀taken฀seriously฀their฀counterparts฀in฀the฀peripheral฀countries฀where฀ they฀work.฀Several฀of฀the฀contributors฀to฀this฀book฀make฀observations,฀if฀ not฀complaints,฀about฀this฀failure,฀whether฀about฀local฀anthropologists฀ being฀taken฀merely฀as฀informants฀by฀their฀colleagues฀from฀the฀centers฀ or฀about฀their฀writings฀or฀political฀positionings฀being฀ignored. To฀ develop฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ means฀ that฀ the฀ “where”฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀must฀undergo฀a฀radical฀change.฀No฀longer฀“elsewhere,”฀the฀ sites฀of฀anthropological฀work฀could฀certainly฀be฀“here฀and฀elsewhere”฀and฀ their฀interconnections.฀It฀remains฀to฀be฀seen฀whether฀the฀pluralization฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 19

of฀the฀place฀of฀anthropology฀will฀mean฀its฀definitive฀release฀from฀the฀grip฀ of฀the฀“savage฀slot.”฀If฀this฀were฀to฀be฀the฀case,฀then฀anthropology฀in฀the฀ singular฀(that฀is,฀as฀a฀modern฀form฀of฀expert฀knowledge฀concerned฀with฀ otherness)฀would฀ultimately฀break฀free฀from฀the฀international฀division฀ of฀intellectual฀labor฀established฀since฀the฀end฀of฀the฀eighteenth฀century,฀ and฀it฀might฀actually฀be฀the฀first฀field฀to฀do฀so฀successfully฀(Restrepo฀ and฀ Escobar฀ 2005).฀ The฀ result฀ would฀ be฀ a฀ plural฀ landscape฀ of฀ world฀ anthropologies฀no฀longer฀constrained฀by฀the฀universals฀of฀modernity฀ but฀aimed฀at฀a฀variety฀of฀competing฀and฀open-ended฀universalisms฀and฀ struggles฀around฀them. The฀multiplication฀of฀subjects,฀field฀sites,฀and฀knowledge฀producers฀ has฀also฀been฀at฀the฀heart฀of฀anthropology’s฀transformation.฀We฀suggest฀ that฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ answers฀ we฀ should฀ give฀ to฀ the฀ “what”฀ question— that฀ is,฀ What฀ should฀ we฀ study?—in฀ order฀ to฀ move฀ toward฀ world฀ anthropologies฀is฀“each฀other.”฀This฀requires,฀first,฀the฀writing฀of฀the฀ histories฀ of฀ those฀ “anthropologies฀ without฀ history.”฀ As฀ many฀ of฀ the฀ contributors฀to฀this฀volume฀indicate,฀most฀versions฀of฀the฀history฀of฀ anthropology฀ are฀ histories฀ of฀ the฀ centers;฀ we฀ know฀ little฀ about฀ the฀ histories฀ of฀ nonhegemonic฀ anthropologies฀ and฀ of฀ nonhegemonic฀ practices.฀ Luckily,฀ in฀ some฀ centers,฀ feminists฀ and฀ ethnic฀ minorities,฀ such฀as฀Native฀Americans฀and฀African฀Americans,฀have฀begun฀writing฀ these฀other฀histories.฀Turning฀to฀each฀other฀with฀an฀attentive฀eye฀to฀ epistemic,฀epistemological,฀and฀political฀differences฀is฀a฀sine฀qua฀non฀ for฀world฀anthropologies,฀that฀is,฀for฀decentering฀the฀existing฀world฀ system฀of฀anthropology.฀Along฀the฀way,฀we฀may฀discover฀other฀topics฀ of฀anthropological฀relevance฀and฀other฀methods฀and฀perspectives฀with฀ which฀to฀study฀them.฀So฀the฀“how”฀of฀anthropological฀practice฀should฀ also฀be฀affected฀by฀this฀change฀in฀the฀“what.”฀The฀world฀anthropologies฀ project฀aims฀at฀the฀construction฀of฀polycentric฀theoretical฀frameworks.฀ Such฀a฀move,฀like฀polycentric฀multiculturalism฀(Shohat฀and฀Stam฀1994;฀ Turner฀1994),฀calls฀for฀a฀reconceptualization฀of฀the฀relationships฀among฀ anthropological฀communities. This฀brings฀us฀to฀the฀last฀question,฀the฀“what฀for”฀of฀our฀practice.฀ And฀ there,฀ despite฀ the฀ fact฀ that฀ most฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ the฀ world฀ are฀politically฀oriented,฀we฀find฀much฀contention฀and฀disagreement.฀ Ideas฀range฀from฀the฀need฀to฀produce฀knowledge฀that฀is฀applicable฀to฀ pressing฀human฀needs฀or฀relevant฀to฀particular฀political฀situations฀to฀the฀ more฀open-ended฀goal฀of฀knowledge฀for฀radical฀social฀transformation.฀ Few,฀if฀any,฀of฀this฀volume’s฀authors฀would฀endorse฀Clifford฀Geertz’s฀ famous฀answer,฀“to฀enlarge฀the฀universe฀of฀human฀discourse”฀and฀to฀ make฀ available฀ to฀ all฀ the฀ answers฀ that฀ others฀ have฀ given฀ to฀ cultural฀

20฀

Gustavo Lins Ribeiro and Arturo Escobar

predicaments฀so฀as฀“to฀include฀them฀in฀the฀consultable฀record฀of฀what฀ man฀has฀said”฀(1973:฀30).฀Few,฀moreover,฀would฀stop฀at฀the฀by-now฀ standard฀poststructuralist฀position฀of฀critically฀analyzing฀the฀claims฀to฀ truth฀embedded฀in฀particular฀discourses฀and฀practices฀and฀how฀they฀ function฀to฀authorize฀particular฀agendas.฀These฀positions฀are฀meaningful฀ but฀insufficient.฀But฀there฀is฀no฀clarity฀about฀how฀to฀go฀farther,฀and฀ certainly฀no฀single฀answer฀that฀is฀good฀once฀and฀for฀all. One฀example฀of฀what฀anthropology฀might฀be฀for฀is฀described฀by฀Paul฀ Nkwi฀in฀his฀chapter.฀He฀argues฀that฀the฀turn฀toward฀applied฀development฀ anthropology฀ in฀ Africa฀ was฀ a฀ means฀ to฀ rehabilitate฀ a฀ discipline฀ so฀ tainted฀by฀colonial฀administration฀and฀thought฀as฀to฀be฀useless—even฀ an฀ impediment—for฀ nation฀ building;฀ it฀ was฀ also฀ a฀ way฀ to฀ have฀ an฀ effect฀on฀development฀interventions.฀For฀Nkwi,฀African฀colleagues฀did฀ not฀ anguish฀ much฀ over฀ the฀ academic-versus-applied฀ debate฀ as฀ they฀ attempted฀to฀develop฀a฀professional฀and฀political฀practice฀under฀existing฀ constraints.฀ As฀ a฀ result,฀ the฀ divide฀ between฀ the฀ two฀ approaches฀ was฀ weakened. Other฀African฀academics฀argue฀for฀the฀need฀to฀subvert฀the฀existing฀ politics฀of฀knowledge฀and฀to฀take฀plural,฀place-based฀anthropological฀ discourses฀seriously.฀The฀concept฀of฀a฀“post-ethnological฀era,”฀proposed฀ by฀Mafeje฀(2001),฀points฀in฀this฀direction.฀Mafeje฀suggests฀a฀number฀of฀ moves฀in฀this฀regard,฀including฀the฀development฀of฀a฀deconstructionist฀ approach฀from฀an฀African฀perspective;฀nondisciplinarity—a฀sort฀of฀free฀ borrowing฀ from฀ any฀ field฀ without฀ concern฀ for฀ disciplinary฀ rules฀ or฀ methods;฀a฀nonepistemological฀approach,฀beyond฀the฀adherence฀to฀a฀ general฀“discursive฀method”;฀a฀new฀practice฀of฀ethnography฀as฀made฀ up฀of฀the฀subject’s฀own฀texts;฀and฀a฀“post-ethnological”฀approach฀to฀ theory฀building—one฀that฀goes฀beyond฀anthropology’s฀objectifying฀and฀ classifying฀imperatives.฀New฀practices฀such฀as฀these,฀though฀debatable,฀ might฀produce฀“new฀styles฀of฀thinking฀and฀new฀forms฀of฀organization฀ of฀knowledge”฀(Mafeje฀2001:฀60;฀see฀Restrepo฀and฀Escobar฀2005฀for฀a฀ discussion฀of฀this฀proposal). Berglund฀ and฀ Toussaint฀ both฀ describe฀ how฀ the฀ turn฀ toward฀ nonacademic,฀policy-driven,฀and฀at฀times฀politically฀oriented฀work฀in฀the฀ United฀Kingdom฀and฀Australia,฀respectively,฀arose฀from฀peculiar฀sets฀ of฀ pressures.฀ In฀ these฀ cases,฀ convergences฀ have฀ taken฀ place฀ between฀ anthropological฀ subjects฀ and฀ matters฀ of฀ heightened฀ public฀ concern,฀ such฀as฀indigenous฀land฀titles฀in฀Australia฀and฀questions฀of฀minority฀ and฀ Euro-British฀ cultural฀ identities฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ Kingdom.฀ These฀ convergences฀happen฀under฀less฀than฀ideal฀circumstances,฀to฀be฀sure,฀ including฀budget฀cuts,฀audit฀requirements,฀productivist฀discourses,฀and฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 21

the฀rise฀of฀consultancies,฀but฀they฀push฀the฀“what฀for”฀of฀anthropology฀ in฀ decidedly฀ more฀ political฀ directions.฀ This฀ creates฀ conditions฀ for฀ anthropologists฀ to฀ be฀ newly฀ on฀ the฀ move,฀ so฀ to฀ speak,฀ even฀ if฀ their฀ actions฀place฀them฀in฀cultural฀and฀political฀minefields.฀At฀issue฀here฀is฀ the฀accountability฀of฀knowledge฀claims,฀sometimes฀under฀conditions฀ in฀which฀the฀“others”฀are฀not฀so฀clearly฀different฀from฀“us”฀or฀in฀which฀ they฀might฀have฀political฀power฀over฀anthropological฀performance.฀As฀a฀ result,฀the฀kinds฀of฀knowledges฀being฀produced,฀the฀methods฀used,฀and฀ the฀rules฀of฀accountability฀have฀all฀undergone฀some฀mutations.฀When฀ the฀grip฀of฀concepts฀such฀as฀“informants”฀and฀“participant฀observation”฀ is฀ loosened,฀ one฀ may฀ say฀ that฀ a฀ hegemonic฀ practice฀ begins฀ to฀ fade฀ away,฀and฀world฀anthropologies฀that฀provide฀other฀ways฀of฀grappling฀ with฀ethical฀and฀political฀issues,฀as฀these฀two฀chapters฀indicate,฀have฀ a฀chance฀to฀emerge. The฀purpose฀and฀use฀of฀anthropology฀can฀be฀discussed฀from฀more฀ familiar฀ epistemological฀ and฀ political-economic฀ perspectives.฀ Some฀ of฀ our฀ authors฀ summon฀ subalternist฀ arguments฀ toward฀ this฀ end.฀ For฀ some,฀ an฀ important฀ task฀ of฀ the฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ project฀ is฀ to฀bring฀epistemic฀and฀ontological฀differences฀to฀the฀fore฀and฀to฀put฀ them฀ into฀ dialogue฀ with฀ Western฀ forms฀ of฀ constructing฀ the฀ world.฀ Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena’s฀framing฀of฀this฀inquiry฀in฀both฀the฀history฀of฀ anthropology฀(her฀discussion฀of฀Arguedas)฀and฀the฀theoretical-political฀ discourse฀of฀interculturality฀in฀the฀contemporary฀Andes฀demonstrates฀ that฀ the฀ domestication฀ of฀ alterity฀ effected฀ by฀ modernity฀ is฀ not฀ a฀ foregone฀ conclusion.฀ Faced฀ with฀ a฀ frontal฀ challenge฀ by฀ those฀ who฀ were฀previously฀considered฀anthropological฀objects฀and฀who฀are฀now฀ intellectuals฀in฀their฀own฀right,฀practitioners฀of฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀ approach฀might฀respond฀with฀new฀concepts฀and฀statements฀of฀purpose.฀ Whether฀“relational฀epistemologies,”฀“epistemological฀engagement,”฀ and฀“epistemic฀difference”฀are฀workable฀responses฀to฀these฀new฀situations฀ remains฀ to฀ be฀ seen.฀ The฀ important฀ point฀ is฀ to฀ reawaken฀ the฀ question฀of฀radical฀difference,฀its฀politics,฀and฀its฀epistemology.฀Indeed,฀ an฀entire฀emerging฀Latin฀American฀research฀program฀and฀perspective฀ is฀ centered฀ on฀ just฀ this฀ issue.฀ Based฀ on฀ a฀ redefinition฀ of฀ modernity฀ from฀the฀perspective฀of฀coloniality—understood฀both฀as฀the฀systematic฀ suppression฀of฀subaltern฀knowledges฀and฀cultures฀since฀the฀European฀ conquest฀and฀as฀the฀constitution฀of฀spaces฀for฀thinking฀other฀thoughts฀ and฀ imagining฀ other฀ worlds,฀ or฀ “worlds฀ and฀ knowledges฀ otherwise”฀ (e.g.,฀ Coronil฀ 1996;฀ Escobar฀ 2004a;฀ Mignolo฀ 2000)—this฀ intellectual฀ trend฀has,฀as฀we฀have฀seen,฀particularly฀valuable฀contributions฀to฀make฀ to฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀perspective.

22฀

Gustavo Lins Ribeiro and Arturo Escobar

Narotzky’s฀entry฀point฀into฀the฀issue฀of฀the฀“what฀for”฀of฀anthropology฀ is฀an฀incisive฀analysis฀of฀the฀participation฀of฀anthropologists฀in฀local฀ political฀projects.฀This฀issue฀pertains฀to฀all฀anthropologies฀but฀has฀special฀ overtones฀for฀those฀conceived฀as฀subaltern฀or฀peripheral.฀There฀is฀some฀ truth฀ in฀ the฀ assumption฀ that฀ empire-building฀ and฀ nation-building฀ anthropologies฀position฀their฀practitioners฀differently฀in฀knowledge฀and฀ political฀fields.฀Indeed,฀practitioners฀of฀the฀former฀have฀tended฀to฀study฀ distant฀others,฀and฀those฀of฀the฀latter,฀their฀own฀societies,฀including฀ their฀own฀internal฀others.฀As฀the฀Colombian฀anthropologist฀Myriam฀ Jimeno฀ (2003)฀ argues,฀ the฀ implications฀ of฀ this฀ difference฀ go฀ beyond฀ political฀locatedness฀and฀commitments;฀it฀affects฀theory฀production,฀ because฀those฀working฀within฀their฀own฀societies฀have฀to฀adapt,฀adopt,฀ or฀transform฀established฀concepts฀from฀the฀center฀or฀create฀new฀ones฀ within฀a฀much฀more฀politicized฀context.฀Jimeno฀goes฀so฀far฀as฀to฀say฀ that฀this฀dynamic฀results฀in฀the฀production฀of฀different฀anthropologies฀ (on฀the฀relationships฀between฀politics฀and฀a฀Brazilian฀style฀of฀doing฀ anthropology,฀see฀Ramos฀1990).฀Of฀course,฀this฀view฀does฀not฀describe฀ all฀peripheral฀practitioners,฀many฀of฀whom฀follow฀received฀scripts฀in฀the฀ name฀of฀a฀universal฀science,฀venturing฀at฀most฀a฀pragmatic฀adaptation฀ of฀models. Narotzky’s฀argument฀has฀several฀salient฀edges.฀She฀finds฀disturbing฀ certain฀ practices฀ on฀ the฀ part฀ of฀ some฀ Northern฀ anthropologists฀ that฀ speak฀ to฀ the฀ core฀ of฀ the฀ political฀ dimension฀ of฀ anthropology.฀ They฀ not฀ only฀ have฀ overlooked฀ local฀ struggles฀ in฀ countries฀ such฀ as฀ Spain฀ but฀have฀often฀failed฀to฀notice฀local฀anthropologists’฀commitments฀to฀ those฀struggles฀and฀the฀ways฀in฀which฀those฀commitments฀influence฀ their฀work.฀Also฀interesting฀in฀Narotzky’s฀account฀is฀the฀observation฀ that฀Spanish฀colleagues฀see฀their฀political฀projects฀as฀part฀and฀parcel฀ of฀ a฀ scientific฀ anthropological฀ endeavor.฀ There฀ are฀ disciplinary฀ and฀ institutional฀ reasons฀ why฀ hegemonic฀ anthropologies฀ find฀ it฀ hard฀ to฀ understand฀ this฀ approach.฀ What฀ needs฀ to฀ be฀ ascertained฀ further฀ are฀ the฀ conditions฀ under฀ which฀ anthropologists฀ might฀ be฀ successful฀ at฀ developing฀a฀more฀clairvoyant฀practice฀linking฀the฀exercise฀of฀power฀ with฀the฀production฀of฀truth฀in฀real-life฀situations฀of฀dominance฀and฀ exploitation. Granted,฀not฀all฀anthropologists฀from฀every฀anthropology฀are,฀will,฀ or฀ even฀ should฀ be฀ engaged฀ in฀ such฀ intellectual-political฀ projects.฀ The฀minimum฀requirement,฀however,฀especially฀for฀those฀arriving฀in฀ fieldwork฀locations฀from฀center฀countries,฀is฀to฀develop฀a฀significant฀ awareness฀of฀the฀multiple,฀locally฀situated฀knowledges฀that฀the฀foreign฀ anthropologist฀ is฀ likely฀ to฀ find฀ in฀ the฀ field.฀ These฀ local฀ knowledges,฀

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 23

including฀those฀of฀local฀anthropologists,฀have฀developed฀in฀the฀midst฀ of฀epistemological฀and฀political฀tensions฀that฀cannot฀be฀assessed฀solely฀ in฀canonical฀academic฀terms.฀The฀obstacles฀to฀fulfilling฀this฀requirement฀ are฀enormous,฀as฀Narotzky฀constructively฀discusses;฀they฀range฀from฀ the฀epistemology฀of฀political฀engagement฀to฀issues฀of฀communicability฀ and฀commensurability฀of฀worldviews฀and฀approaches฀between฀anthropologists฀and฀local฀constituencies฀and฀among฀anthropologists฀themselves. It฀may฀well฀be฀that฀world฀anthropologies฀should฀remain฀a฀floating฀ concept,฀as฀Fabian฀advises.฀As฀we฀have฀shown,฀it฀already฀exists฀on฀some฀ levels฀of฀discourse฀and฀practice.฀Vakhtin’s฀metaphor฀is฀telling:฀for฀him,฀ world฀anthropologies฀may฀be฀likened฀to฀a฀garden฀in฀which฀many฀species฀ proliferate,฀and฀we฀should฀only฀nourish฀it฀without฀aiming฀to฀control฀ it.฀As฀Verena฀Stolcke฀put฀it฀during฀our฀symposium,฀anthropology฀today฀ has฀a฀twofold฀driving฀force:฀a฀shared฀humanity฀and฀the฀consciousness฀ of฀historically฀marked฀differences.฀We฀have฀traveled฀a฀long฀way฀since฀ anthropologists฀discussed฀the฀former฀in฀terms฀of฀modernist฀notions฀of฀ humankind;฀shared฀humanity฀has฀taken฀on฀more฀complex฀dimensions฀ today,฀ecologically,฀culturally,฀and฀politically.฀It฀has฀been฀only฀recently฀ that฀we฀started฀developing฀languages฀for฀referring฀to฀historical฀differences฀ appropriate฀to฀the฀global฀situation;฀concepts฀such฀as฀diversality฀are฀a฀ way฀to฀start.

Some฀Concluding฀Remarks In฀ a฀ recent฀ text,฀ the฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologist฀ Alcida฀ Ramos฀ (2005)฀ mused฀over฀a฀utopia฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀that฀resembled฀the฀multilingualism฀of฀certain฀Amazonian฀groups฀for฀whom฀the฀rule฀of฀linguistic฀ exogamy฀created฀“communities฀of฀multiple฀voices,฀a฀kind฀of฀organized฀ and฀ solidary฀ Babel.”฀ In฀ this฀ plural฀ landscape,฀ “all฀ would฀ contribute฀ languages,฀ideas,฀solutions฀and฀proposals฀without฀any฀of฀the฀partners฀ losing฀his/her฀identity฀or฀local฀character,฀which฀would฀be฀preserved฀as฀ symbolic฀capital฀at฀the฀service฀of฀the฀collectivity”฀(2005:฀2).฀Although฀ we฀ are฀ not฀ close฀ to฀ reaching฀ this฀ goal,฀ in฀ Ramos’s฀ opinion฀ we฀ can฀ already฀envision฀it. The฀project฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀certainly฀has฀utopian฀reverberations,฀especially฀if฀we฀consider,฀along฀with฀Paul฀Ricoeur฀(1986),฀that฀ utopias฀ are฀ struggles฀ in฀ the฀ present฀ over฀ the฀ meaning฀ of฀ the฀ future.฀ As฀we฀have฀attempted฀to฀show,฀world฀anthropologies฀entail฀both฀an฀ intellectual฀and฀a฀political฀project.฀In฀other฀words,฀we฀are฀not฀talking฀ only฀ about฀ more฀ inclusive฀ social฀ diversity฀ (as฀ in฀ multiculturalism);฀

24฀

Gustavo Lins Ribeiro and Arturo Escobar

in฀ principle฀ anthropologists฀ would฀ easily฀ accept฀ social฀ and฀ political฀ equality.฀We฀are฀further฀suggesting฀that฀anthropologies฀everywhere฀can฀ benefit฀from฀the฀scholarship฀already฀existing฀in฀globally฀fragmented฀ spaces.฀To฀do฀so,฀as฀we฀have฀argued,฀entails฀a฀series฀of฀changes฀and฀concerns—from฀attention฀to฀uneven฀exchanges฀among฀anthropologies฀to฀ consideration฀of฀multiple฀histories,฀trajectories,฀languages,฀conceptual฀ frameworks,฀political฀commitments,฀experiences฀of฀transnationalism฀ and฀ networking,฀ and฀ so฀ forth.฀ Taking฀ these฀ considerations฀ seriously฀ would฀open฀up฀new฀dialogic฀possibilities,฀other฀avenues฀of฀engagement.฀ This฀process฀would฀apply฀whether฀one฀believed฀in฀the฀unity฀of฀the฀field฀ or฀whether,฀alternatively,฀one฀favored฀the฀idea฀of฀a฀multiplicity;฀indeed,฀ both฀perspectives฀are฀represented฀in฀this฀volume.฀If฀the฀former,฀we฀are฀ talking฀about฀anthropology฀as฀a฀unified฀field,฀but฀in฀a฀nonhegemonic฀ way,฀ an฀ open-ended฀ unity฀ that฀ admits฀ of฀ diversity.฀ If฀ the฀ latter,฀ we฀ might฀see฀world฀anthropologies฀as฀fostering฀diversality—understood฀as฀ a฀giving฀up฀of฀classical฀notions฀of฀universality฀and฀seeing฀in฀diversity฀ the฀main฀principle฀of฀creativity.฀We฀suggest฀that฀we฀must฀keep฀these฀ two฀visions฀in฀tension. This฀is฀why฀it฀would฀be฀ironic฀if฀the฀project฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀ came฀to฀be฀seen฀as฀a฀new฀attempt฀on฀the฀part฀of฀the฀“periphery”฀to฀strike฀ back,฀as฀in฀some฀simplistic฀interpretations฀of฀the฀aims฀of฀postcolonial฀ theory฀vis-à-vis฀the฀former฀imperial฀powers.฀On฀the฀contrary,฀we฀think฀ that฀the฀present฀is฀a฀moment฀of฀enlargement฀of฀anthropological฀horizons฀ that฀will฀make฀our฀scholarly฀practice฀a฀richer฀cosmopolitics,฀one฀that฀is฀ capable฀of฀dealing฀with฀the฀challenges฀arising฀in฀the฀twenty-first฀century.฀ The฀concept฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀provides฀a฀space฀of฀opportunities฀ for฀all฀those฀who฀understand฀that฀difference฀goes฀well฀beyond฀inequality฀ and฀that฀diversity฀is฀an฀asset฀to฀be฀cherished฀on฀epistemological,฀cultural,฀ social,฀and฀ecological฀grounds. Change฀has฀been฀a฀constant฀in฀the฀history฀of฀anthropologies฀everywhere.฀Anthropologies’฀multiple฀deaths฀and฀rebirths฀reveal฀an฀ability฀ to฀transform฀themselves฀and฀redefine฀their฀interests฀and฀goals.฀Anthropologies฀are฀finely฀attuned฀to฀the฀sociological฀changes฀of฀different฀periods฀ and฀ places.฀ In฀ a฀ globalized฀ world฀ this฀ calls฀ for฀ diverse฀ international฀ voices฀and฀perspectives฀actively฀participating฀in฀any฀assessment฀of,฀and฀ at,฀the฀frontiers฀of฀anthropological฀knowledges.฀Indeed,฀a฀globalized฀ world฀is฀a฀perfect฀scenario฀in฀which฀anthropologies฀can฀thrive,฀because฀ a฀basic฀anthropological฀lesson฀is฀respect฀for฀difference.฀Anthropologists฀ who,฀in฀accord฀with฀deep฀anthropological฀traditions,฀praise฀plurality฀ and฀diversity฀are฀surely฀fostering฀these฀standpoints฀within฀their฀own฀ milieu.฀The฀time฀is฀ripe฀for฀world฀anthropologies.

World฀Anthropologies฀ ฀ 25

Notes 1.฀ See฀ “The฀ World฀ Anthropologies฀ Network”฀ website฀ (www.ram-wan.org);฀ see฀also฀WAN฀Collective฀2003฀for฀a฀statement฀about฀the฀project.฀Events฀related฀ to฀this฀initiative฀include,฀besides฀the฀international฀symposium฀leading฀to฀the฀ present฀volume,฀sessions฀at฀the฀2002฀meeting฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀ Association,฀at฀the฀First฀Congress฀of฀Latin฀American฀Anthropology฀(Argentina,฀ 2005),฀ and฀ at฀ the฀ Colombian฀ Congress฀ of฀ Anthropology฀ (2005),฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ conferences฀ and฀ debates฀ in฀ Australia,฀ Mexico,฀ China,฀ and฀ Japan.฀ In฀ 2004,฀ in฀ Recife,฀ Brazil,฀ Gustavo฀ Lins฀ Ribeiro฀ and฀ Paul฀ Little฀ organized฀ a฀ meeting,฀ funded฀ by฀ the฀ Wenner-Gren฀ Foundation,฀ of฀ fourteen฀ representatives฀ of฀ anthropological฀ associations฀ to฀ discuss฀ global฀ cooperation฀ in฀ anthropology.฀ The฀presidents฀of฀the฀associations฀for฀Australia,฀Brazil,฀Canada,฀France,฀Great฀ Britain,฀ India,฀ South฀ Africa,฀ and฀ the฀ United฀ States฀ were฀ present.฀ Japan฀ sent฀ the฀ director฀ of฀ international฀ relations฀ of฀ its฀ association.฀ The฀ presidents฀ of฀ the฀ European฀ Association฀ of฀ Social฀ Anthropologists,฀ the฀ Latin฀ American฀ Association฀ of฀ Anthropology,฀ the฀ Pan฀ African฀ Anthropological฀ Association,฀ and฀ the฀ International฀ Union฀ of฀ Ethnological฀ Sciences฀ were฀ also฀ there.฀ The฀ representatives’฀ enthusiasm฀ showed฀ that฀ the฀ time฀ was฀ ripe฀ to฀ create฀ more฀ horizontal฀modes฀of฀interaction฀and฀exchange฀on฀a฀global฀level.฀This฀meeting฀ resulted฀in฀the฀creation฀of฀the฀World฀Council฀of฀Anthropological฀Associations฀ (WCAA),฀with฀the฀primary฀goal฀of฀promoting฀more฀diverse฀exchanges฀among฀ anthropologists฀ worldwide฀ (see฀ the฀ founding฀ agreement฀ of฀ WCAA฀ at฀ www. wcaanet.org).฀A฀by-product฀of฀this฀meeting฀was฀a฀debate฀among฀Australian,฀ Brazilian,฀ and฀ Canadian฀ anthropologists,฀ at฀ the฀ twenty-fourth฀ Biannual฀ Brazilian฀ Meeting฀ of฀ Anthropology฀ in฀ 2004,฀ over฀ the฀ many฀ problems฀ and฀ issues฀ surrounding฀ the฀ engagement฀ of฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ native฀ people’s฀ struggles฀for฀land. 2.฀ For฀a฀more฀contemporary฀analysis฀of฀this฀topic,฀see฀Ben฀Ari฀1999,฀Mafeje฀ 2001,฀Trouillot฀1991,฀and฀van฀Bremen฀and฀Shimizu฀1999a. 3.฀ At฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ North฀ Carolina–Chapel฀ Hill,฀ an฀ interdisciplinary฀ research฀ group฀ on฀ social฀ movement,฀ anchored฀ in฀ anthropology,฀ is฀ based฀ on฀ the฀ notion฀ that฀ social-movement฀ activists฀ should฀ be฀ taken฀ seriously฀ as฀ knowledge฀producers.฀See฀http://www.unc.edu/smwg/.

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Part 1 Transnationalism and State Power

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t w o

Reshaping Anthropology A View from Japan

Shinji Yamashita

A

nthropology฀is฀usually฀considered฀to฀be฀a฀Western฀discipline฀developed฀by฀constructing฀colonial฀others฀in฀non-Western฀societies.฀ However,฀ as฀ Akitoshi฀ Shimizu฀ (1999:฀ 115)฀ has฀ argued,฀ if฀ Japan฀ as฀ a฀ non-Western฀ country฀ has฀ its฀ own฀ anthropology,฀ this฀ view฀ cannot฀ be฀maintained.฀One฀has฀to฀redefine฀anthropology฀in฀a฀way฀that฀goes฀ beyond฀the฀dichotomy฀between฀West฀and฀non-West,฀and฀beyond฀the฀ orientalism฀that฀has฀prevailed฀throughout฀the฀history฀of฀the฀discipline.฀ Doing฀ so฀ will฀ lead฀ us฀ to฀ create฀ an฀ open,฀ interactive฀ space฀ in฀ which฀ various฀world฀anthropologies฀can฀meet฀in฀order฀to฀understand฀diverse฀ human฀societies฀and฀cultures. The฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Cultural฀Anthropology฀(formerly฀the฀Japanese฀ Society฀of฀Ethnology),฀the฀main฀association฀of฀Japanese฀sociocultural฀ anthropologists,฀ currently฀ numbers฀ approximately฀ 2,000฀ members.1฀ This฀ is฀ far฀ smaller฀ than฀ the฀ American฀ Anthropological฀ Association฀ (about฀11,000฀members)฀but฀larger฀than฀the฀European฀Association฀of฀ Social฀Anthropologists฀(about฀650฀members).฀In฀addition,฀there฀are฀some฀ 800฀members฀of฀the฀Anthropological฀Society฀of฀Nippon,฀the฀association฀ of฀ Japanese฀ biological฀ anthropologists.฀ In฀ other฀ words,฀ the฀ Japanese฀ anthropological฀community฀is฀one฀of฀the฀largest฀in฀the฀world.2 Nevertheless,฀the฀achievements฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀are฀little฀ known฀outside฀Japan.฀Although฀some฀reviews฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀ are฀ available฀ in฀ English,฀ such฀ as฀ the฀ one฀ Chie฀ Nakane฀ wrote฀ in฀ the฀ 1970s฀(Nakane฀1974),฀some฀of฀the฀latest฀reference฀works฀still฀make฀no฀ mention฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology—for฀example,฀the฀Encyclopedia฀of฀ Social฀and฀Cultural฀Anthropology฀(Barnard฀and฀Spencer฀1996).฀In฀order฀

29

30฀

Shinji Yamashita

to฀ fill฀ this฀ gap,฀ in฀ this฀ chapter฀ I฀ first฀ review฀ the฀ history฀ of฀ Japanese฀ anthropology฀since฀its฀foundation฀in฀1884฀and฀highlight฀its฀distinctive฀ features฀and฀achievements.3฀I฀then฀examine฀Japanese฀anthropology฀in฀ the฀wider฀contexts฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀and฀the฀main฀issues฀that฀ contemporary฀Japanese฀anthropology฀faces.฀The฀experience฀of฀Japanese฀ anthropology฀may฀provide฀us฀with฀some฀important฀pointers฀about฀how฀ anthropology฀can฀be฀reshaped฀as฀a฀global฀discipline. As฀for฀my฀position฀in฀undertaking฀this฀review,฀I฀must฀make฀it฀clear฀ that฀ I฀ am฀ not฀ a฀ representative฀ of฀ Japanese฀ anthropology,฀ nor฀ do฀ I฀ wish฀to฀be.฀I฀have฀been฀greatly฀influenced฀by฀Western฀anthropologies,฀ especially฀through฀studying฀abroad฀as฀a฀visiting฀scholar฀at฀universities฀ in฀the฀United฀States฀and฀Europe,฀although฀I฀was฀educated฀in฀Japan฀and฀ am฀based฀there.4฀I฀am฀a฀Southeast฀Asia฀specialist,฀having฀carried฀out฀ fieldwork฀mainly฀in฀Indonesia฀and฀Malaysia.฀My฀approach฀to฀Japanese฀ anthropology,฀therefore,฀is฀not฀national฀but฀transnational.฀In฀this฀sense฀ I฀ am฀ located฀ intellectually฀ somewhere฀ between฀ Japan฀ and฀ the฀ West,฀ or฀ between฀ Japan฀ and฀ Southeast฀ Asia.฀ For฀ me,฀ as฀ for฀ transnational฀ migrants฀in฀the฀contemporary฀world,฀what฀is฀important฀is฀not฀where฀ I฀am฀from฀but฀where฀I฀am฀between฀(Clifford฀1997:฀37).฀The฀project฀of฀a฀ multiplicity฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀for฀me฀derives฀perhaps฀from฀within฀ myself,฀as฀an฀anthropologist฀based฀in฀Japan฀but฀with฀a฀transnational฀ background.

A฀Short฀History฀of฀Japanese฀Anthropology One฀can฀divide฀the฀history฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀into฀five฀developmental฀stages,฀encompassing,฀respectively,฀the฀years฀1884–1913,฀1913– 34,฀1934–45,฀1945–64,฀and฀1964฀to฀the฀present.฀The฀boundaries฀of฀these฀ historical฀stages฀are฀somewhat฀arbitrary,฀because฀the฀actual฀historical฀ process฀ is฀ of฀ course฀ continuous.฀ In฀ what฀ follows,฀ I฀ highlight฀ briefly฀ the฀main฀features฀of฀each฀stage฀(I฀review฀this฀history฀in฀more฀detail฀in฀ Yamashita฀2004). Anthropology฀ in฀ Japan฀ began฀ in฀ 1884฀ when฀ a฀ group฀ of฀ young฀ scholars฀ formed฀ a฀ workshop฀ called฀ Jinruigaku฀ no฀ Tomo,฀ or฀ “Friends฀ of฀ Anthropology”฀ (Terada฀ 1981:฀ 7).฀ The฀ founding฀ of฀ this฀ group฀ was฀ stimulated฀by฀the฀theories฀of฀Edward฀Morse,฀then฀professor฀of฀biology฀ at฀the฀University฀of฀Tokyo.฀Morse฀had฀excavated฀a฀shell฀mound฀in฀Tokyo฀ and฀had฀proposed,฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀the฀remains฀he฀found฀there,฀that฀ cannibalism฀had฀been฀practiced฀in฀ancient฀Japan.฀The฀central฀figure฀of฀the฀ Jinruigaku฀no฀Tomo฀was฀Sho¯goro ¯฀Tsuboi,฀who฀was฀offended฀by฀Morse’s฀ cannibalism฀thesis.฀The฀group฀advocated฀that฀the฀origins฀of฀Japanese฀

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culture฀should฀be฀investigated฀by฀the฀Japanese฀themselves,฀not฀by฀foreign฀ scholars฀(Shimizu฀1999:฀126).฀In฀this฀sense,฀Japanese฀anthropology฀was฀ born฀ as฀ a฀ product฀ of฀ nationalist฀ consciousness.฀ Two฀ years฀ later฀ the฀ workshop฀evolved฀into฀Tokyo฀Jinruigakkai฀(the฀Anthropological฀Society฀ of฀Tokyo),฀and฀later฀it฀became฀Nihon฀Jinruigakkai฀(the฀Anthropological฀ Society฀of฀Nippon).฀In฀1892,฀after฀studying฀anthropology฀in฀England฀ for฀three฀years,฀Tsuboi฀became฀the฀first฀professor฀of฀anthropology฀at฀the฀ University฀of฀Tokyo.฀He฀led฀the฀debate฀over฀the฀origins฀of฀the฀Japanese฀ people฀in฀the฀early฀years฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century. Tsuboi฀ died฀ in฀ 1913.฀ In฀ the฀ same฀ year,฀ his฀ successor,฀ Ryu¯zo¯฀ Torii,฀ published฀an฀article฀in฀which฀he฀argued฀that฀“ethnology”฀(jinshugaku฀ or฀minzokugaku)฀should฀be฀separate฀from฀“anthropology”฀(jinruigaku)฀ (Torii฀ 1975:฀ 480–83).฀ Because฀ of฀ his฀ extensive฀ field฀ research฀ abroad,฀ Torii฀was฀much฀more฀concerned฀with฀cultures฀outside฀Japan’s฀national฀ boundaries฀than฀Tsuboi฀had฀been.฀Torii฀had฀conducted฀his฀first฀fieldwork฀in฀northeastern฀China฀in฀1894,฀followed฀by฀research฀in฀Taiwan,฀ the฀ Chishima฀ Islands฀ (off฀ Hokkaido),฀ China,฀ Korea,฀ eastern฀ Siberia,฀ Manchuria,฀and฀Mongolia.฀His฀fieldwork฀clearly฀reflected฀the฀colonial฀ expansion฀of฀the฀Japanese฀Empire฀into฀other฀parts฀of฀Asia,฀including฀ Taiwan฀in฀1895฀and฀Korea฀in฀1910.฀In฀his฀1913฀paper,฀Torii฀proposed฀the฀ establishment฀of฀a฀discipline฀to฀be฀called฀to¯yo¯฀jinshugaku฀(literally฀“the฀ study฀of฀the฀Oriental฀race”)฀or฀to¯yo¯฀minzokugaku฀(“Oriental฀ethnology”).฀ In฀this฀way฀he฀advocated฀the฀study฀of฀the฀ethnology฀of฀the฀Orient฀by฀ Oriental฀scholars,฀because฀they฀were฀assumed฀to฀be฀in฀a฀better฀position฀ than฀ Western฀ scholars฀ to฀ study฀ these฀ regions฀ (Torii฀ 1975:฀ 482–83).5฀ The฀article฀marked฀a฀new฀historical฀stage฀in฀Japanese฀anthropology,฀in฀ which฀Japan฀began฀to฀observe฀others฀and฀not฀merely฀to฀be฀observed฀ (see฀Shimizu฀1999:฀116)฀and฀in฀which฀the฀object฀of฀study฀shifted฀from฀ Japanese฀people฀to฀neighboring฀colonial฀others฀in฀Asia. Further฀ Japanese฀ colonial฀ expansion฀ led฀ to฀ an฀ interest฀ in฀ a฀ wider฀ geographical฀area.฀Japanese฀colonial฀power฀reached฀Micronesia฀in฀1919,฀ Manchuria฀in฀1933,฀and฀Southeast฀Asia฀in฀1941.฀As฀it฀expanded,฀the฀ Nihon฀Minzokugakkai฀(Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology)฀was฀established฀ in฀ 1934.฀ Interestingly,฀ its฀ establishment฀ was฀ stimulated฀ by฀ the฀ First฀ International฀Congress฀of฀Anthropological฀and฀Ethnological฀Sciences,฀ held฀in฀London฀that฀year.฀As฀the฀prospectus฀for฀the฀establishment฀of฀ the฀society฀tells฀us: Ethnology฀in฀Japan฀has฀had฀a฀history฀of฀several฀decades.฀However,฀we฀ have฀not฀yet฀reached฀the฀international฀standard฀.฀.฀.฀Ethnological฀studies฀ in฀Japan฀have฀been฀concerned฀with฀native฀culture฀and฀ancient฀cultural฀

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survivals฀in฀Japan฀under฀the฀name฀of฀minzokugaku฀[folklore฀studies].฀But฀ we฀have฀to฀develop฀the฀discipline฀in฀comparative฀perspective฀with฀other฀ cultures,฀to฀consider฀the฀origin฀and฀diffusion฀of฀culture฀using฀the฀fruits฀ of฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ ethnology฀ in฀ the฀ West.฀ In฀ particular,฀ through฀ participation฀in฀the฀First฀International฀Congress฀of฀Anthropological฀and฀ Ethnological฀ Sciences฀ held฀ in฀ London฀ this฀ summer,฀ we฀ have฀ realized฀ that฀ we฀ should฀ promote฀ ethnological฀ research฀ in฀ Japan.฀ This฀ is฀ the฀ reason฀why฀we฀are฀reorganizing฀the฀former฀Minzokugakkai฀[Society฀of฀ Folklore฀ Studies]฀ into฀ the฀ Nihon฀ Minzokugakkai฀ [Japanese฀ Society฀ of฀ Ethnology].6฀(Minzokugaku฀Shinko¯kai฀1984:฀4)

Two฀things฀are฀important฀about฀the฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology.฀ First,฀that฀it฀was฀formed฀under฀the฀stimulus฀of฀an฀international฀congress฀ means฀that฀the฀society฀was฀itself฀a฀product฀of฀the฀global฀development฀of฀ anthropology฀during฀the฀1930s.฀Second,฀the฀newborn฀society฀was฀quite฀ interdisciplinary฀at฀the฀start:฀its฀founding฀members฀included฀specialists฀ from฀disciplines฀such฀as฀rural฀sociology,฀Oriental฀history,฀linguistics,฀ Japanese฀folklore฀studies,฀Japanese฀classics,฀comparative฀religions,฀and฀ archaeology.฀Kurakichi฀Shiratori,฀the฀founding฀father฀of฀Oriental฀history฀ in฀Japan,฀was฀its฀first฀president. A฀ year฀ later,฀ however,฀ in฀ 1935,฀ Kunio฀ Yanagita฀ founded฀ the฀ Minkandensho¯฀ no฀ kai฀ (Folklore฀ Workshop),฀ which฀ specialized฀ in฀ Japanese฀ folkways฀ and฀ later฀ developed฀ into฀ the฀ Japanese฀ Society฀ of฀ Folklore฀Studies.฀There,฀anthropology฀took฀a฀more฀nationalist฀turn.฀As฀ a฀result,฀scholars฀specializing฀in฀Japanese฀folklore฀studies฀(Volkskunde,฀ in฀German)฀became฀separated฀from฀those฀specializing฀in฀comparative,฀ or฀foreign,฀ethnology฀(Völkerkunde,฀in฀German).฀This฀division฀of฀labor฀ between฀ nationalist฀ and฀ internationalist฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ Japan฀ continues฀to฀the฀present. In฀1943,฀the฀Institute฀of฀Ethnic฀Research฀(Minzoku฀Kenkyu¯sho)฀was฀ established฀under฀the฀Japanese฀Ministry฀of฀Education฀and฀Culture฀to฀ carry฀out฀research฀that฀could฀contribute฀to฀the฀ethnic฀policies฀of฀the฀ empire.฀Major฀Japanese฀ethnologists฀at฀that฀time฀were฀involved฀in฀this฀ institute,฀though฀its฀history฀is฀still฀largely฀unclear฀(Nakao฀1997).฀The฀ life฀of฀the฀institute,฀however,฀was฀short:฀it฀was฀closed฀at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀ Second฀World฀War,฀in฀1945. After฀the฀war,฀Japan฀lost฀its฀colonies.฀The฀regional฀concerns฀of฀Japanese฀ ethnology฀were฀once฀more฀confined฀to฀Japan.฀The฀defeat฀also฀raised฀ the฀issue฀of฀the฀national฀character฀of฀the฀Japanese฀people.฀The฀Japanese฀ translation฀of฀Ruth฀Benedict’s฀The฀Chrysanthemum฀and฀the฀Sword฀was฀ published฀in฀1946,฀selling฀millions฀of฀copies฀over฀the฀years.฀In฀1948,฀

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Eiichiro¯฀Ishida฀organized฀a฀workshop฀on฀the฀origins฀of฀the฀Japanese฀ nation,฀and฀it฀attracted฀considerable฀public฀attention.฀The฀general฀public฀ found฀Namio฀Egami’s฀thesis฀that฀the฀imperial฀family฀had฀originated฀ among฀ the฀ northern฀ Asian฀ equestrian฀ peoples฀ in฀ Korea฀ particularly฀ sensational.฀Anthropological฀fieldwork฀during฀this฀period฀was฀limited฀ basically฀to฀peoples฀on฀the฀fringes฀of฀Japan,฀such฀as฀the฀Ainu฀in฀Hokkaido฀ and฀the฀Okinawans฀in฀the฀Ryu¯kyu¯฀Islands. In฀1964,฀the฀Olympic฀Games฀were฀held฀in฀Tokyo.฀This฀was฀also฀the฀ year฀ when฀ restrictions฀ on฀ overseas฀ travel฀ for฀ Japanese฀ people฀ were฀ removed.฀These฀events฀marked฀the฀end฀of฀the฀postwar฀period,฀and฀Japan฀ entered฀into฀a฀period฀of฀rapid฀economic฀growth฀and฀overseas฀economic฀ expansion.฀In฀parallel฀with฀this฀development,฀Japanese฀anthropology฀ once฀again฀became฀focused฀on฀other฀cultures฀outside฀Japan,฀while฀interest฀in฀Japanese฀culture฀decreased.฀The฀mainstream฀of฀current฀Japanese฀ anthropology฀has฀continued฀to฀move฀in฀this฀direction. Looking฀at฀this฀historical฀process,฀several฀things฀can฀be฀noted.฀First,฀ Japanese฀anthropology฀began฀as฀a฀search฀for฀the฀origins฀of฀the฀Japanese฀ and฀of฀Japanese฀culture,฀in฀response฀to฀the฀theories฀of฀a฀foreign฀researcher.฀ This฀gave฀Japanese฀anthropology฀the฀character฀of฀a฀nationalist฀project฀ intended฀to฀clarify฀the฀nature฀of฀the฀Japanese฀rather฀than฀of฀the฀whole฀of฀ mankind.฀This฀research฀paradigm฀remained฀popular฀until฀the฀1970s. Second,฀Japan฀had฀a฀history฀of฀colonization฀in฀Asia฀and฀the฀Pacific,฀ and฀Japanese฀anthropology฀developed฀as฀part฀of฀this฀colonial฀experience.฀ This฀ history฀ was฀ similar฀ to฀ that฀ of฀ Western฀ anthropology,฀ although฀ Japanese฀anthropologists฀saw฀their฀colonial฀others฀in฀a฀distinctive฀way,฀ to฀which฀I฀turn฀later.฀Under฀this฀perspective,฀comparisons฀were฀made฀ with฀other฀parts฀of฀Asia,฀in฀order฀to฀clarify฀the฀origins฀of฀the฀Japanese฀ people฀and฀Japanese฀culture. Third,฀the฀regional฀concerns฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀have฀varied฀ historically,฀depending฀on฀the฀fluctuating฀boundaries฀of฀the฀Japanese฀ nation฀and฀Japanese฀influence฀in฀the฀wider฀world.฀Analyzing฀the฀articles฀ published฀in฀Minzokugaku-kenkyu฀(Japanese฀Journal฀of฀Ethnology)฀from฀ 1935฀to฀1994,฀Teruo฀Sekimoto฀(1995:฀138–39)฀pointed฀out฀a฀centrifugal฀ trend฀within฀Japanese฀anthropology:฀in฀each฀period฀in฀modern฀history,฀ Japanese฀ anthropologists฀ have฀ tended฀ to฀ study฀ others฀ in฀ frontier฀ or฀ peripheral฀areas฀in฀relation฀to฀Japan’s฀national฀boundaries.฀In฀colonial฀ times฀ this฀ meant฀ that฀ they฀ studied฀ Taiwan,฀ Korea,฀ and฀ Micronesia,฀ whereas฀during฀the฀early฀postwar฀period,฀when฀travel฀was฀difficult,฀they฀ concentrated฀on฀Hokkaido¯฀and฀Okinawa.฀Since฀1964฀they฀have฀been฀ concerned฀with฀cultures฀increasingly฀distant฀from฀Japan,฀in฀parallel฀with฀ Japan’s฀economic฀expansion฀into฀the฀remotest฀parts฀of฀the฀world.฀It฀was฀

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during฀this฀period฀that฀Japanese฀anthropology฀became฀“anthropology฀in฀ a฀global฀perspective”฀(Shimizu฀1999:฀161),฀extending฀beyond฀both฀the฀ Japanese฀nation฀and฀its฀former฀empire฀in฀the฀Asia-Pacific฀region.฀The฀ interests฀of฀Japanese฀anthropologists฀now฀extend฀to฀Africa฀and฀Latin฀ America,฀areas฀of฀little฀importance฀for฀the฀Japanese฀economy. In฀short,฀the฀history฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀reflects฀Japan’s฀changing฀position฀in฀the฀modern฀world฀system,฀with฀the฀result฀that฀Japanese฀ anthropology฀has฀at฀times฀adopted฀emphases฀different฀from฀those฀in฀ the฀West.

Nationality฀and฀Transnationality฀in฀Anthropological฀ Traditions฀in฀Japan Anthropology฀in฀the฀West฀has฀commonly฀been฀defined฀as฀the฀study฀ of฀others฀and฀other฀cultures.฀As฀we฀have฀seen,฀anthropology฀in฀Japan฀ started฀from฀an฀interest฀in฀Japanese฀identity฀and฀culture.7฀Later,฀in฀parallel฀ with฀ modern฀ Japan’s฀ colonial฀ expansion,฀ Japanese฀ anthropological฀ interests฀extended฀to฀the฀colonized฀areas,฀but฀still฀often฀in฀search฀of฀ clues฀to฀understanding฀the฀cultural฀roots฀of฀Japan฀through฀research฀into฀ cultural฀similarities.฀As฀we฀have฀seen,฀Ryu¯zo¯฀Torii฀redefined฀Japanese฀ anthropology฀at฀this฀stage฀as฀“Oriental฀ethnology.”฀This฀characterization฀ was฀ based฀ on฀ the฀ assumption฀ that฀ Japanese฀ were฀ better฀ able฀ than฀ Westerners฀ to฀ understand฀ other฀ Asian฀ peoples฀ and฀ cultures,฀ because฀ the฀Japanese฀were฀themselves฀Asians. Yet฀there฀was฀an฀element฀of฀“orientalism”฀in฀Japanese฀anthropology,฀ too.฀By฀seeing฀its฀Asian฀and฀Pacific฀colonies฀as฀“backward”฀and฀“primitive,”฀ Japan฀ could฀ strengthen฀ its฀ claim฀ to฀ being฀ an฀ “advanced”฀ and฀ “civilized”฀country฀on฀a฀par฀with฀the฀Western฀world฀(see฀Kang฀1996;฀ Kawamura฀1993;฀Yamashita฀2004).฀In฀this฀regard,฀it฀is฀interesting฀to฀ consider฀the฀difference฀in฀anthropological฀stances฀taken฀by฀the฀West฀ and฀ Japan฀ in฀ the฀ study฀ of฀ Southeast฀ Asia.฀ For฀ instance,฀ in฀ studying฀ the฀ cultures฀ and฀ societies฀ of฀ the฀ Dutch฀ East฀ Indies฀ (now฀ Indonesia),฀ Dutch฀anthropologists฀in฀the฀1930s฀developed฀a฀form฀of฀structuralism— an฀ attempt฀ to฀ understand฀ the฀ principles฀ of฀ the฀ “human฀ mind”฀ that฀ foreshadowed฀Lévi-Straussian฀structuralism฀of฀the฀1960s.฀In฀contrast,฀the฀ Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀carried฀out฀a฀research฀project฀in฀the฀late฀ 1950s฀to฀search฀for฀the฀origins฀of฀Japanese฀culture฀in฀mainland฀Southeast฀Asia,฀particularly฀in฀the฀rice฀cultivation฀zone฀of฀Indochina.฀This฀ had฀been฀a฀preoccupation฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀from฀its฀inception฀ (Minzoku฀Bunka฀So¯go¯฀Cho¯sadan฀1959).

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Despite฀ this,฀ Japanese฀ anthropology฀ was฀ also฀ transnational.฀ From฀ the฀ beginning,฀ Japanese฀ anthropologists฀ were฀ keen฀ to฀ learn฀ from฀ anthropological฀theories฀developed฀in฀the฀West.฀Tsuboi,฀the฀founding฀ ancestor฀of฀modern฀Japanese฀anthropology,฀went฀to฀England฀to฀study฀ the฀discipline฀before฀he฀was฀appointed฀professor฀of฀anthropology฀at฀the฀ University฀of฀Tokyo.฀Torii,฀the฀initiator฀of฀Oriental฀ethnology฀in฀Japan,฀ did฀ not฀ study฀ in฀ the฀ West,฀ but฀ Masao฀ Oka,฀ a฀ key฀ figure฀ in฀ Japanese฀ ethnology฀ during฀ the฀ wartime฀ and฀ postwar฀ periods,฀ did.฀ In฀ Vienna฀ he฀studied฀the฀ideas฀of฀the฀German฀and฀Austrian฀school฀of฀historical฀ ethnology,฀which฀he฀used฀to฀reconstruct฀the฀various฀stages฀of฀ethnic฀ and฀cultural฀history฀in฀Japan฀through฀comparison฀with฀the฀Asian฀and฀ Pacific฀regions. In฀ colonial฀ Taiwan,฀ Inezo¯฀ Utsushiwaka,฀ professor฀ of฀ ethnology฀ (dozokugaku)฀ at฀ Taihoku฀ (Taipei)฀ Imperial฀ University,฀ was฀ a฀ Harvard฀ graduate฀ who฀ had฀ studied฀ with฀ Roland฀ Dixon.฀ His฀ student,฀ To¯ichi฀ Mabuchi,฀who฀became฀a฀leading฀anthropologist฀in฀postwar฀Japan,฀did฀ his฀fieldwork฀among฀the฀aboriginal฀peoples฀of฀the฀Taiwan฀highlands฀ under฀ the฀ influence฀ of฀ Western฀ sociocultural฀ theories฀ of฀ the฀ period.฀ He฀also฀had฀a฀life-long฀interest฀in฀Dutch฀anthropology฀because฀of฀his฀ involvement฀in฀research฀in฀Indonesia฀during฀the฀Japanese฀occupation฀ (1942–45). In฀Japanese฀Micronesia,฀Kenichi฀Sugiura฀carried฀out฀fieldwork฀in฀the฀ late฀1930s฀and฀early฀1940s฀on฀the฀land฀tenure฀system,฀under฀the฀influence฀ of฀ Bronislaw฀ Malinowski’s฀ functionalism.฀ In฀ colonial฀ Korea,฀ Takashi฀ Akiba,฀professor฀of฀sociology฀at฀Keijo ¯฀(Seoul)฀Imperial฀University,฀carried฀ out฀research฀on฀shamanism฀using฀a฀Durkheimian฀perspective฀gained฀ from฀studying฀in฀Europe.฀His฀student฀Seiichi฀Izumi,฀who฀became฀another฀ leading฀ anthropologist฀ after฀ World฀ War฀ II,฀ carried฀ out฀ his฀ fieldwork฀ on฀Jeju฀Island฀off฀the฀southern฀tip฀of฀the฀Korean฀peninsula,฀drawing฀ inspiration฀from฀Malinowski’s฀Argonauts฀of฀the฀Western฀Pacific. It฀is฀therefore฀wrong฀to฀consider฀Japanese฀anthropology฀an฀isolated฀ phenomenon:฀ it฀ developed฀ along฀ with฀ anthropology฀ in฀ the฀ rest฀ of฀ the฀world.฀The฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀itself฀was฀formed฀under฀ the฀stimulus฀of฀an฀international฀meeting฀in฀London.฀Furthermore,฀the฀ colonial฀model฀was฀also฀translocal.฀As฀Jan฀van฀Bremen฀and฀Akitoshi฀ Shimizu฀pointed฀out฀(1999b:฀8):฀“In฀Japan,฀research฀in฀French฀IndoChina฀served฀as฀a฀model฀for฀the฀first฀series฀of฀governmental฀studies฀that฀ were฀made฀of฀Okinawa.฀In฀turn,฀these฀studies,฀together฀with฀models฀ taken฀from฀research฀in฀British฀India฀.฀.฀.฀inspired฀the฀research฀projects฀that฀ were฀subsequently฀carried฀out฀in฀Taiwan.฀In฀their฀turn,฀the฀Taiwanese฀

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Shinji Yamashita

studies฀served฀as฀a฀model฀for฀research฀projects฀carried฀out฀in฀Korea฀and฀ Manchuria.”

Japanese฀Anthropology฀in฀the฀Academic฀World฀ System:฀Does฀Japanese฀Anthropology฀Exist? Takami฀Kuwayama฀(1997,฀2004b)฀has฀argued฀for฀what฀he฀calls฀the฀“world฀ system”฀of฀anthropology.฀According฀to฀him,฀the฀core฀or฀center฀of฀this฀ system฀ is฀ occupied฀ by฀ the฀ United฀ States,฀ Great฀ Britain,฀ and฀ France,฀ which฀ have฀ the฀ power฀ to฀ determine฀ which฀ kinds฀ of฀ knowledge฀ are฀ most฀desired฀in฀anthropology.฀These฀countries฀dictate฀the฀nature฀of฀the฀ anthropological฀discourse฀that฀scholars฀from฀peripheral฀countries฀must฀ use฀if฀they฀wish฀to฀be฀recognized.฀Within฀this฀framework฀of฀core฀and฀ periphery,฀Kuwayama฀characterizes฀Japanese฀anthropology฀as฀“semiperipheral”:฀it฀is฀peripheral฀in฀relation฀to฀the฀West,฀but฀central฀in฀relation฀ to฀other฀parts฀of฀Asia. This฀argument฀has฀drawn฀criticism.฀Van฀Bremen,฀for฀example,฀criticized฀ Kuwayama฀for฀“the฀excessive฀weight฀given฀to฀center-periphery฀relations฀ and฀positions฀and฀the฀static฀view฀taken฀of฀them”฀(van฀Bremen฀1997:฀ 62).฀The฀binary฀opposition฀of฀center฀and฀periphery฀looks฀static฀if฀one฀ considers฀the฀two฀to฀be฀substantive฀entities.฀In฀reality,฀it฀is฀often฀difficult฀ to฀determine฀where฀the฀center฀is.฀For฀instance,฀there฀often฀appears฀to฀be฀ a฀center-periphery฀division฀within฀the฀center฀itself.฀Some฀universities฀ in฀the฀United฀States,฀the฀most฀powerful฀core฀country฀in฀anthropology,฀ may฀actually฀be฀more฀peripheral฀than฀the฀University฀of฀Tokyo฀or฀other฀ leading฀institutions฀in฀Japan. Moreover,฀ today฀ there฀ are฀ many฀ students฀ and฀ teachers฀ from฀ peripheral฀ areas฀ in฀ the฀ anthropology฀ departments฀ of฀ U.S.฀ universities.฀ For฀ example,฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ California–Berkeley,฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ most฀ powerful฀anthropology฀departments฀in฀the฀world,฀had฀faculty฀members฀ from฀Africa,฀China,฀Japan,฀Malaysia,฀and฀elsewhere฀during฀my฀stay฀as฀ a฀visiting฀professor฀there฀in฀1998–99.฀Similar฀situations฀can฀be฀found฀ at฀other฀major฀centers,฀such฀as฀Harvard฀and฀the฀University฀of฀Chicago.฀ In฀reverse,฀many฀scholars฀with฀PhDs฀from฀universities฀in฀Europe฀and฀ the฀United฀States฀teach฀anthropology฀at฀Asian฀universities,฀in฀places฀ such฀as฀Singapore,฀Hong฀Kong,฀and,฀increasingly,฀Japan.฀Furthermore,฀ globalization฀and฀internet฀communication฀have฀tended฀to฀make฀the฀ center-periphery฀opposition฀increasingly฀meaningless:฀close฀neighbors฀ and฀ the฀ farthest฀ parts฀ of฀ the฀ world฀ are฀ the฀ same฀ distance฀ away฀ in฀ cyberspace.฀The฀center฀and฀the฀periphery฀are฀currently฀intermingled฀ in฀complex฀ways.

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Nevertheless,฀national฀boundaries฀still฀exist฀in฀scholarship.฀Among฀ them,฀perhaps฀the฀most฀critical฀structural฀problem฀for฀Japanese฀anthropology฀in฀the฀anthropological฀world฀system฀is฀the฀boundary฀of฀language.฀ Japanese฀anthropologists฀practice฀mainly฀in฀Japanese,฀a฀minor฀language฀ in฀international฀academic฀communication.฀They฀are฀well฀aware฀of฀the฀ main฀ trends฀ in฀ Western฀ core฀ anthropology:฀ the฀ references฀ cited฀ in฀ Minzokugaku-kenkyu฀are฀mostly฀works฀of฀Western฀literature.฀Students฀ are฀required฀to฀read฀works฀in฀English฀and฀other฀European฀languages,฀ in฀ addition฀ to฀ Japanese.฀ Articles฀ by฀ Japanese฀ scholars,฀ however,฀ are฀ mostly฀written฀in฀Japanese,฀which฀makes฀access฀to฀them฀difficult฀for฀ non-Japanese฀readers.฀In฀this฀respect,฀Japanese฀anthropology,฀unlike฀the฀ Japanese฀economy,฀imports฀too฀much฀and฀exports฀too฀little. In฀his฀article฀“Japanese฀Cultural฀Anthropology฀Viewed฀from฀Outside,”฀ Jerry฀Eades฀(1994),฀a฀British-born฀social฀anthropologist฀based฀in฀Japan฀ since฀ 1991,฀ asked฀ why฀ Japanese฀ anthropology฀ had฀ not฀ had฀ greater฀ influence฀ outside฀ Japan,฀ despite฀ the฀ number฀ of฀ anthropologists฀ and฀ the฀ volume฀ of฀ research฀ they฀ carried฀ out.฀ He฀ argued฀ that฀ part฀ of฀ the฀ answer฀lay฀in฀the฀institutional฀processes฀by฀which฀Japanese฀research฀and฀ publications฀were฀produced.฀Japanese฀students฀and฀researchers฀generally฀ did฀ not฀ compete฀ with฀ their฀ Western฀ counterparts฀ in฀ their฀ academic฀ careers.฀Writing฀in฀a฀foreign฀language฀did฀not฀necessarily฀help฀in฀getting฀ a฀job฀in฀a฀Japanese฀university,฀and฀so฀people฀wrote฀in฀Japanese฀for฀the฀ Japanese฀market.฀Japanese฀anthropology฀in฀this฀sense฀formed฀a฀sort฀of฀ closed฀island฀with฀its฀own฀audience. Such฀differences฀in฀audiences฀sometimes฀create฀divisions,฀and฀sometimes฀conflicts,฀between฀Japanese฀and฀foreign฀anthropologies.฀Gordon฀ Mathews,฀an฀American฀anthropologist฀specializing฀in฀Japan฀and฀teaching฀ in฀Hong฀Kong,฀recently฀examined฀the฀differences฀between฀Japanese฀and฀ American฀depictions฀of฀Japan฀(Mathews฀2004).฀He฀noted฀that฀“what฀an฀ American฀audience,฀professional฀or฀lay,฀seeks฀to฀know฀about฀Japan฀will฀ likely฀be฀very฀different฀from฀what฀a฀Japanese฀audience฀seeks฀to฀know.”฀ A฀topic฀that฀might฀interest฀an฀American฀audience฀might฀be฀boring฀for฀a฀ Japanese฀readership.฀He฀also฀pointed฀out฀that฀“few฀American฀researchers฀ pay฀attention฀to฀the฀research฀conducted฀by฀Japanese฀folklife฀specialists,฀ looking฀ for฀ remnants฀ of฀ Japanese฀ traditions;฀ this฀ research฀ is฀ for฀ the฀ most฀part฀completely฀outside฀American฀interests.”฀This,฀he฀argued,฀led฀ to฀an฀imbalance฀in฀intellectual฀power฀relations฀between฀American฀and฀ Japanese฀anthropology.฀Japanese฀anthropologists฀act฀as฀if฀they฀belong฀ to฀a฀colonized฀country,฀rarely฀researching฀the฀metropolis฀(the฀United฀ States),฀but฀importing฀American฀and฀European฀theories฀to฀use฀in฀their฀ own฀work.

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The฀problem฀goes฀back฀to฀the฀question฀of฀power฀relations฀in฀the฀academic฀world฀system,฀which฀Kuwayama฀stressed.฀In฀a฀paper฀on฀“native฀ anthropologists”฀ (1997),฀ he฀ examined฀ the฀ discord฀ between฀ foreign฀ and฀native฀anthropologists฀with฀special฀reference฀to฀Japanese฀studies฀ inside฀and฀outside฀Japan.฀He฀pointed฀out฀that฀the฀discord฀arose฀from฀ the฀structure฀of฀the฀production฀of฀knowledge฀in฀the฀world฀system฀of฀ anthropology,฀rather฀than฀from฀personal฀and฀emotional฀conflicts.฀In฀ this฀system,฀Japanese฀anthropology฀lies฀in฀the฀shadow฀cast฀by฀Western฀ hegemony.฀This฀raises฀another฀vital฀question:฀does฀Japanese฀anthropology฀exist฀at฀all฀as฀a฀distinctive฀entity? Before฀ answering฀ this฀ question,฀ let฀ me฀ mention฀ briefly฀ my฀ own฀ experience฀of฀differences฀in฀perception฀between฀American฀and฀Japanese฀ anthropologists.฀In฀1993,฀Jerry฀Eades฀and฀I฀organized฀a฀session฀called฀ “The฀Dynamics฀of฀Identity฀Fabrication:฀The฀Interplay฀of฀Local,฀National,฀ and฀Global฀Perspectives”฀at฀the฀annual฀meeting฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀Association฀(AAA),฀held฀in฀Washington,฀DC.฀The฀session฀dealt฀ with฀issues฀of฀cultural฀identity฀in฀Japan,฀Indonesia,฀India,฀and฀Egypt;฀ it฀did฀not฀focus฀exclusively฀on฀Japan.฀Nevertheless,฀in฀the฀audience฀I฀ recognized฀a฀number฀of฀Japan฀specialists฀who฀had฀come฀to฀see฀“Japanese”฀ anthropologists.฀During฀the฀discussion,฀a฀member฀of฀the฀audience฀asked฀ what฀was฀the฀“Japanese฀twist”฀in฀anthropology.8฀We฀were฀perplexed฀by฀ this฀question฀because฀our฀session฀was฀not฀concerned฀with฀“Japanese”฀ anthropology฀ as฀ such.฀ We฀ had฀ thought฀ we฀ were฀ simply฀ practicing฀ anthropology,฀but฀our฀American฀colleagues฀saw฀us฀as฀“Japanese”฀anthropologists. After฀ returning฀ to฀ Japan฀ in฀ 1994,฀ I฀ organized฀ a฀ panel฀ titled฀ “Does฀ Japanese฀Ethnology฀Exist?”฀at฀the฀annual฀meeting฀of฀the฀Japanese฀Society฀ of฀ Ethnology,฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ answer฀ the฀ question฀ that฀ had฀ been฀ posed฀ at฀ the฀ AAA฀ the฀ previous฀ year.฀ Motomitsu฀ Uchibori,฀ the฀ chairperson฀ of฀ the฀ panel,฀ summarized฀ the฀ conclusions฀ reached฀ (Uchibori฀ 1995),฀ and฀I฀reiterate฀the฀important฀points฀as฀follows.฀The฀phrase฀“Japanese฀ anthropology”฀refers฀to฀two฀main฀bodies฀of฀work.฀The฀first฀consists฀of฀ Japanese฀researchers’฀studies฀of฀their฀own฀society฀and฀culture,฀including฀ the฀ type฀ of฀ work฀ known฀ as฀ nihonjinron฀ (discussions฀ of฀ the฀ nature฀ of฀ Japanese฀ identity),฀ a฀ genre฀ popular฀ in฀ Japan.฀ The฀ second฀ is฀ research฀ by฀Japanese฀scholars฀carried฀out฀in฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀world.฀It฀is฀there,฀in฀ relation฀to฀the฀world฀system฀of฀anthropology,฀that฀Japanese฀research฀ is฀often฀perceived฀as฀peripheral.฀This฀peripheral฀character฀in฀relation฀ to฀ the฀ Western฀ anthropological฀ center฀ is฀ a฀ problem฀ not฀ so฀ much฀ of฀ institutions฀as฀of฀language.฀Deciding฀which฀language฀to฀write฀in฀is฀much฀ more฀than฀an฀individual฀choice.฀It฀is฀related฀to฀the฀identity฀of฀Japanese฀

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anthropologists,฀which฀oscillates฀between฀two฀poles:฀the฀anthropological฀ academic฀universe฀and฀the฀local฀world฀in฀which฀anthropologists฀live.฀ It฀ would฀ be฀ absurd฀ for฀ Japanese฀ anthropologists฀ to฀ publish฀ all฀ their฀ papers฀in฀English,฀because฀anthropological฀inquiry฀involves฀internal฀ motivation฀that฀is฀rooted฀in฀the฀local฀world.฀Japanese฀anthropologists฀ may฀have฀no฀other฀way฀to฀write฀than฀in฀Japanese฀if฀they฀wish฀to฀reflect฀ their฀Japanese฀identity.฀If฀Japanese฀anthropology฀exists฀at฀all,฀it฀is฀based฀ in฀the฀identity฀of฀Japanese฀anthropologists. Identity,฀however,฀is฀a฀complex฀thing:฀it฀can฀be฀multiple฀rather฀than฀ single.฀Kirin฀Narayan฀argued฀against฀the฀fixity฀of฀a฀distinction฀between฀ “native”฀and฀“non-native”฀anthropologists฀and฀suggested,฀“We฀might฀ more฀profitably฀view฀each฀anthropologist฀in฀terms฀of฀shifting฀identifications฀amid฀a฀field฀of฀interpenetrating฀communities฀and฀power฀relations”฀ (1993:฀671).฀Referring฀to฀the฀“enactment฀of฀hybridity,”฀she฀points฀out฀ that฀“we฀are฀all฀incipiently฀bi-฀(or฀multi-)฀cultural฀in฀that฀we฀belong฀to฀ worlds฀both฀personal฀and฀professional,฀whether฀in฀the฀field฀or฀at฀home”฀ (1993:฀681).฀In฀this฀perspective,฀it฀may฀be฀unproductive฀to฀stick฀to฀the฀ dichotomy฀between฀Japanese฀anthropology฀and฀Western฀anthropology.฀ What฀is฀important฀is฀to฀create฀a฀common฀space฀in฀which฀anthropologies฀ in฀the฀contemporary฀world฀can฀meet฀for฀the฀future.

Japanese฀Anthropology฀in฀the฀Contemporary฀World Anthropology฀today฀is฀at฀a฀critical฀juncture.฀This฀is฀the฀case฀in฀Japan฀ as฀well.฀In฀particular,฀in฀studying฀and฀teaching฀anthropology,฀students฀ and฀teachers฀often฀find฀it฀difficult฀to฀relate฀their฀contemporary฀interests฀ to฀classical฀theories฀in฀the฀discipline.฀In฀these฀situations,฀how฀do฀we฀ reproduce฀anthropological฀knowledge฀for฀the฀future?฀In฀order฀to฀look฀at฀ this฀problem฀against฀the฀background฀of฀changing฀social฀needs฀today,฀in฀ 2000฀the฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀set฀up฀a฀committee฀to฀examine฀ anthropological฀education฀in฀Japan.฀I฀chaired฀this฀committee,฀and฀we฀ examined฀issues฀such฀as฀education฀in฀anthropology฀at฀major฀Japanese฀ universities,฀ anthropology฀ textbooks,฀ the฀ anthropology฀ job฀ market,฀ and฀ institutional฀ restructuring.฀ Our฀ findings฀ can฀ be฀ summarized฀ as฀ follows.

The฀Niche฀of฀Anthropology Anthropologists฀must฀develop฀an฀academic฀niche฀in฀order฀to฀meet฀new฀ social฀needs฀in฀the฀contemporary฀world.฀The฀main฀interests฀of฀anthropologists฀have฀shifted฀over฀time,฀beginning฀with฀the฀historical฀reconstruction฀

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of฀human฀culture฀in฀the฀late฀nineteenth฀century฀and฀proceeding฀through฀ the฀structural-functional฀analysis฀of฀culture฀and฀society฀in฀the฀first฀half฀ of฀the฀twentieth฀century;฀Lévi-Straussian฀structuralism,฀Victor฀Turner’s฀ ritual฀process,฀and฀the฀Geertzian฀interpretation฀of฀cultures฀in฀the฀1960s฀ and฀1970s;฀and฀contemporary฀issues฀such฀as฀“development,”฀“medicine,”฀ “education,”฀ “ethnic฀ conflict,”฀ “globalization,”฀ “identity,”฀ and฀ even฀ “September฀11.”฀Research฀into฀contemporary฀issues—what฀was฀once฀ labeled฀“applied฀anthropology”—has฀become฀the฀basic฀anthropology฀ of฀ today.฀ It฀ is฀ urgent,฀ then,฀ that฀ we฀ develop฀ an฀ academic฀ niche฀ in฀ Japan฀that฀is฀relevant฀to฀radical฀changes฀in฀the฀contemporary฀world฀ (see฀Ahmed฀and฀Shore฀1995). In฀studying฀the฀contemporary฀world,฀however,฀anthropology฀may฀ overlap฀with฀other฀disciplines฀such฀as฀sociology฀and฀cultural฀studies.9฀ What฀is฀peculiar฀to฀anthropology฀is฀its฀approach฀to฀the฀subject฀of฀research฀and฀its฀way฀of฀understanding฀human฀reality.฀In฀this฀respect,฀we฀ must฀ remain฀ committed฀ to฀ our฀ method฀ of฀ ethnographic฀ participant฀ observation฀in฀relation฀to฀a฀specific฀community฀or฀cultural฀practice,฀ because฀most฀of฀the฀other฀social฀sciences฀have฀tended฀to฀adopt฀statistical฀ methods฀ based฀ on฀ quantitative฀ data.฀ In฀ other฀ words,฀ anthropology฀ is฀the฀only฀discipline฀that฀still฀tries฀to฀construct฀sociocultural฀theory฀ through฀participant฀observation฀in฀the฀micro฀social฀worlds฀in฀which฀ people฀live.

The฀Matrix฀of฀Teaching In฀parallel฀with฀the฀change฀of฀interests฀in฀anthropology฀in฀recent฀years,฀ the฀ subjects฀ that฀ Japanese฀ anthropologists฀ study฀ have฀ diversified.฀ In฀ this฀situation,฀how฀can฀anthropology฀retain฀its฀integrity฀and฀identity฀ as฀ a฀ unified฀ academic฀ discipline?฀ The฀ answer฀ lies฀ in฀ trying฀ to฀ relate฀ the฀“primitive”฀to฀the฀“civilized,”฀the฀traditional฀to฀the฀modern,฀the฀ periphery฀to฀the฀center,฀and฀classic฀anthropological฀knowledge฀to฀the฀ contemporary฀world฀by฀looking฀at฀the฀two฀elements฀of฀each฀dichotomy฀ not฀ as฀ different฀ worlds฀ but฀ as฀ segments฀ of฀ the฀ same฀ modern฀ world฀ system.฀What฀is฀important฀is฀to฀connect฀classic฀and฀contemporary฀topics฀ of฀research฀with฀each฀other.฀In฀doing฀so,฀we฀must฀explore฀areas฀of฀research฀ that฀link฀these฀segments฀of฀the฀world฀system—for฀example,฀as฀Raymond฀ Firth฀(1992:฀211)฀once฀pointed฀out,฀“development฀in฀Tikopia฀society”฀ and฀“questions฀of฀kinship฀in฀some฀sectors฀of฀modern฀London.”

Reshaping฀Anthropology฀ ฀ 41

The฀Pluralization฀of฀the฀Discipline It฀ is฀ inevitable฀ that฀ anthropology฀ in฀ Japan฀ will฀ become฀ increasingly฀ interdisciplinary,฀because฀the฀objects฀of฀our฀research฀are฀complicated฀ phenomena฀that฀can฀be฀analyzed฀only฀by฀using฀a฀combination฀of฀disciplinary฀ approaches.฀ If฀ we฀ study฀ “development,”฀ we฀ require฀ knowledge฀of฀macro-level฀political฀economy,฀government฀policy,฀and฀regional฀ sociology.฀This฀interdisciplinarity฀is฀related฀to฀the฀job฀market฀as฀well.฀ Jobs฀ specifically฀ for฀ anthropologists฀ are฀ becoming฀ fewer฀ these฀ days฀ in฀ Japan.฀ Instead,฀ there฀ is฀ a฀ growing฀ number฀ of฀ positions฀ in฀ gender฀ studies,฀development฀studies,฀area฀studies,฀and฀so฀on,฀all฀of฀which฀stress฀ interdisciplinary฀research.฀At฀the฀University฀of฀Tokyo,฀the฀Department฀ of฀Cultural฀Anthropology฀now฀belongs฀to฀a฀larger฀unit฀called฀“Interdisciplinary฀Cultural฀Studies,”฀since฀the฀restructuring฀of฀the฀graduate฀ school฀in฀1996.฀Generally,฀in฀Japan฀it฀is฀rare฀for฀anthropology฀to฀constitute฀ an฀independent฀department;฀usually฀it฀is฀integrated฀into฀wider฀interdisciplinary฀ departments฀ with฀ labels฀ such฀ as฀ “International฀ Cultural฀ Studies,”฀“Global฀Social฀Sciences,”฀and฀“Asian฀and฀African฀Studies.”฀This฀ situation฀is฀sometimes฀good฀for฀the฀discipline,฀because฀we฀can฀carry฀out฀ interdisciplinary฀research฀and฀teaching฀on฀the฀contemporary฀world฀in฀ accordance฀with฀the฀complexity฀of฀the฀research฀topics.฀But฀it฀may฀also฀ mean฀that฀we฀lose฀our฀anthropological฀identity฀through฀diversification฀ and฀research฀into฀an฀increasingly฀wide฀range฀of฀topics.

The฀Internationalization฀of฀the฀Discipline Anthropology฀ is฀ in฀ principle฀ an฀ international฀ science.฀ However,฀ anthropological฀practices฀usually฀have฀national฀boundaries,฀and฀practitioners฀do฀not฀yet฀have฀a฀“global฀anthropology.”฀That฀is฀why฀we฀need฀ to฀ internationalize฀ the฀ discipline,฀ something฀ that฀ has฀ already฀ been฀ happening฀ in฀ Japanese฀ classrooms.10฀ Japan฀ now฀ has฀ many฀ students฀ from฀ foreign฀ countries.฀ At฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Tokyo,฀ approximately฀ 40฀ percent฀ of฀ the฀ graduate฀ school฀ students฀ are฀ from฀ abroad,฀ mostly฀ from฀ East฀ Asian฀ countries฀ such฀ as฀ China,฀ Korea,฀ and฀ Taiwan.฀ In฀ my฀ graduate฀seminar฀in฀2002,฀six฀of฀the฀twelve฀students฀registered฀were฀ from฀foreign฀countries,฀including฀China,฀Korea,฀Taiwan,฀Hungary,฀and฀ the฀ Netherlands.฀ We฀ also฀ have฀ visiting฀ scholars฀ and฀ professors฀ from฀ various฀parts฀of฀the฀world,฀and฀the฀job฀market฀in฀Japan฀is฀opening฀up฀ to฀foreigners฀as฀well.11฀It฀is฀within฀these฀transnational฀situations฀that฀ we฀must฀reshape฀anthropology.

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Shinji Yamashita

Applied฀Anthropology Japanese฀ anthropologists฀ are฀ exploring฀ the฀ use฀ of฀ anthropological฀ knowledge฀in฀a฀wider฀range฀of฀contexts,฀including฀practical฀fields฀such฀ as฀the฀work฀of฀international฀development฀agencies,฀public฀sector฀institutions฀ that฀ promote฀ intercultural฀ understanding,฀ and฀ nonprofit฀ organizations฀involved฀in฀social฀and฀cultural฀issues.฀For฀instance,฀the฀ Japan฀ International฀ Cooperation฀ Agency฀ (JAICA)฀ was฀ established฀ in฀ 1974฀to฀promote฀the฀Japanese฀Official฀Development฀Assistance฀(ODA)฀ program.฀Its฀projects฀often฀require฀anthropological฀expertise,฀and฀some฀ anthropologists฀have฀worked฀with฀the฀program.฀Further,฀the฀number฀of฀ students฀who฀want฀to฀work฀in฀practical฀sectors฀is฀increasing.฀Although฀ this฀field฀is฀less฀fully฀developed฀in฀Japan฀than฀in฀the฀United฀States฀or฀ Europe,฀it฀seems฀potentially฀to฀be฀a฀major฀source฀of฀employment฀for฀ anthropologists.

Beyond฀Orientalism:฀An฀Asian฀Network฀of฀ Anthropologists Following฀ on฀ from฀ this฀ committee,฀ Jerry฀ Eades฀ and฀ I฀ organized฀ a฀ session฀called฀“The฀Reproduction฀of฀Anthropological฀Knowledge฀and฀ the฀ East฀ Asian฀ Future”฀ at฀ the฀ AAA฀ annual฀ meeting฀ in฀ New฀ Orleans฀ in฀ 2002,฀ to฀ discuss฀ the฀ issue฀ in฀ the฀ wider฀ context฀ of฀ the฀ East฀ Asian฀ anthropological฀future.฀For฀this฀purpose,฀we฀invited฀Joseph฀Bosco,฀of฀ the฀Chinese฀University฀of฀Hong฀Kong,฀and฀Kim฀Kwang-Ok,฀of฀Seoul฀ National฀ University,฀ to฀ present฀ papers฀ on฀ Hong฀ Kong฀ and฀ Korea,฀ respectively,฀in฀addition฀to฀the฀papers฀dealing฀with฀Japan.฀We฀recognized฀ that฀anthropologies฀in฀Asia฀were฀different฀from฀one฀another฀because฀ of฀differences฀in฀historical฀background฀as฀well฀as฀in฀the฀social฀position฀ of฀anthropology฀in฀each฀country. Another฀participant,฀William฀Kelly,฀of฀Yale฀University,฀pointed฀out฀that฀ despite฀these฀differences,฀many฀problems฀were฀shared฀across฀national฀ boundaries.฀He฀emailed฀me฀after฀the฀meeting:฀“What฀most฀struck฀me฀was฀ how฀similar฀are฀Japan฀and฀US฀anthropologies.฀All฀five฀features฀that฀you฀ emphasize฀as฀challenges฀to฀Japanese฀anthropology฀[those฀summarized฀ in฀the฀preceding฀sections]฀face฀us฀as฀well฀and฀serve฀as฀foci฀of฀debate.฀ This฀ is฀ just฀ a฀ random฀ and฀ immediate฀ thought,฀ but฀ perhaps฀ at฀ some฀ point,฀it฀might฀be฀interesting฀to฀think฀of฀a฀bi-national฀panel฀that฀would฀ take฀these฀five฀points฀as฀a฀basis฀and฀organize฀the฀session฀as฀a฀series฀of฀ presentations฀on฀each฀of฀the฀five฀points,฀with฀each฀presentation฀done฀ as฀ a฀ collaboration฀ or฀ dialogue฀ by฀ a฀ Japan฀ anthropologist฀ and฀ a฀ U.S.฀ anthropologist”฀(personal฀correspondence,฀25฀November฀2002).

Reshaping฀Anthropology฀ ฀ 43

The฀problems฀the฀discipline฀faces฀today฀are,฀therefore,฀problems฀not฀ only฀for฀Japanese฀anthropologists฀but฀also฀for฀U.S.฀anthropologists฀and฀ perhaps฀for฀those฀in฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀world.฀This฀might฀lead฀us฀to฀a฀kind฀ of฀“interactive฀anthropology”฀at฀the฀global฀level,฀a฀position฀I฀advocate฀ later.฀ But฀ before฀ proceeding฀ to฀ the฀ global฀ level,฀ let฀ me฀ consider฀ the฀ possibility฀of฀a฀regional฀Asian฀network฀of฀anthropologists,฀because฀Asia฀ is฀the฀area฀with฀which฀Japanese฀anthropology฀has฀been฀most฀deeply฀ and฀intensively฀concerned. Among฀anthropologists฀in฀Asia,฀communication฀and฀cooperation฀have฀ so฀far฀been฀limited.฀Kuwayama฀(2004b),฀in฀his฀discussion฀of฀relations฀ on฀the฀periphery฀of฀the฀anthropological฀world฀system,฀quoted฀Thomas฀ Gerholm฀and฀Ulf฀Hannerz฀(1982:฀7),฀according฀to฀whom฀“the฀map฀of฀ the฀discipline฀shows฀a฀prosperous฀mainland฀of฀British,฀American,฀and฀ French฀anthropologies,฀and฀outside฀it฀an฀archipelago฀of฀large฀and฀small฀ islands—some฀of฀them฀connected฀to฀the฀mainland฀by฀sturdy฀bridges฀ or฀frequent฀ferry฀traffic,฀others฀rather฀isolated.”฀In฀this฀anthropological฀ world฀map,฀the฀residents฀of฀the฀peripheral฀islands฀always฀look฀toward฀ the฀central฀mainland,฀rather฀than฀toward฀each฀other.฀This฀metaphor฀ is฀applicable฀to฀Asia. In฀1995,฀a฀symposium฀titled฀“Cultural฀Anthropology฀and฀Asia:฀The฀ Past,฀the฀Present฀and฀the฀Future”฀was฀held฀at฀the฀annual฀meeting฀of฀ the฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀in฀Osaka.฀Its฀organizers’฀aim฀was฀to฀ discuss฀the฀place฀of฀cultural฀anthropology฀in฀Asia฀and฀to฀pursue฀the฀ possibility฀of฀regional฀cooperation.฀Asian฀anthropologists฀from฀China,฀ Korea,฀Japan,฀Taiwan,฀Philippines,฀Indonesia,฀and฀Malaysia฀participated,฀ and฀Nur฀Yalmann,฀of฀Harvard฀University,฀who฀is฀of฀Turkish฀origin,฀gave฀ the฀keynote฀speech.฀This฀was฀the฀first฀attempt฀to฀bring฀Asian฀anthropologists฀ together฀ at฀ the฀ annual฀ meeting฀ of฀ the฀ Japanese฀ Society฀ of฀ Ethnology. Research฀exchange฀programs฀also฀exist฀at฀Japanese฀universities฀and฀ research฀institutions,฀including฀the฀National฀Museum฀of฀Ethnology฀in฀ Osaka,฀one฀of฀the฀most฀important฀centers฀for฀anthropological฀research฀ in฀Japan.฀A฀number฀of฀joint฀research฀projects฀are฀supported฀financially฀ by฀ the฀ Japanese฀ Ministry฀ of฀ Education,฀ Culture,฀ Sports,฀ Science฀ and฀ Technology,฀the฀Japan฀Society฀for฀the฀Promotion฀of฀Science,฀the฀Japan฀ Foundation,฀ the฀ Toyota฀ Foundation,฀ and฀ others.฀ The฀ Asia฀ Center฀ of฀ the฀Japan฀Foundation฀was฀established฀in฀1995฀especially฀to฀promote฀ mutual฀understanding฀among฀Asian฀peoples฀and฀cultures.฀Furthermore,฀ Japanese฀universities฀have฀recently฀pursued฀the฀international฀exchange฀ of฀students฀much฀more฀actively฀than฀before.฀Given฀this฀trend,฀I฀can฀ propose฀several฀possibilities฀for฀future฀cooperation฀among฀Asian฀anthropologists.

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Shinji Yamashita

First,฀as฀I฀pointed฀out฀earlier,฀Japanese฀anthropology฀in฀the฀colonial฀ past฀resulted฀in฀a฀Japanese฀version฀of฀orientalism,฀in฀which฀the฀peoples฀ of฀Asia฀were฀seen฀in฀negative฀terms฀as฀dojin,฀or฀“indigenous฀peoples.”฀ Shifting฀perceptions฀of฀Asia฀within฀anthropology฀could฀be฀examined฀ by฀Japanese฀and฀other฀Asian฀scholars฀as฀a฀joint฀project฀on฀the฀history฀of฀ colonialism฀in฀Asia.฀Japan฀appeared฀“Asian”฀in฀relation฀to฀the฀West,฀but฀ it฀practiced฀a฀sort฀of฀orientalism฀toward฀other฀Asians฀during฀the฀colonial฀ period.฀ In฀ order฀ to฀ overcome฀ the฀ tendency฀ toward฀ “orientalization”฀ within฀Japanese฀anthropology,฀we฀must฀discuss฀it฀together฀with฀Asian฀ colleagues. Second,฀the฀recent฀growth฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology,฀especially฀the฀ increase฀ in฀ fieldwork฀ carried฀ out฀ in฀ Asia,฀ has฀ been฀ closely฀ related฀ to฀ Japanese฀economic฀expansion฀during฀the฀postwar฀period.฀“Understanding฀ other฀cultures”฀became฀more฀necessary฀as฀the฀influence฀of฀the฀Japanese฀ economy฀expanded.฀This฀does฀not฀mean฀that฀anthropology฀is฀once฀more฀ playing฀a฀role฀in฀Japanese฀expansionism.฀However,฀it฀may฀be฀possible฀ to฀investigate฀the฀differences฀between฀Japanese฀anthropology฀and฀other฀ Asian฀anthropologies,฀in฀the฀same฀way฀one฀might฀investigate฀the฀gap฀ between฀Japanese฀and฀American฀anthropologies฀discussed฀by฀Gordon฀ Mathews฀(2004).฀For฀example,฀Japanese฀anthropology฀has฀shown฀less฀ concern฀for฀development฀issues฀than฀some฀other฀Asian฀anthropologies.฀ This฀gap฀has฀to฀be฀bridged฀if฀we฀are฀to฀develop฀academic฀exchanges. Third,฀ it฀ is฀ clear฀ that฀ anthropology฀ in฀ each฀ Asian฀ country฀ has฀ its฀ own฀national฀characteristics.฀What฀kinds฀of฀proposals,฀then,฀can฀we฀in฀ Asia฀make฀to฀address฀the฀postcolonial฀situation฀of฀anthropology฀in฀the฀ contemporary฀world?฀This฀is฀what฀we฀will฀be฀debating฀with฀Asian฀colleagues฀in฀the฀near฀future.฀In฀order฀to฀answer฀this฀question,฀we฀need฀to฀ develop฀an฀Asian฀network฀of฀anthropologists,฀though฀this฀has฀not฀yet฀ been฀realized.฀If฀it฀were฀to฀be฀set฀up,฀it฀could฀hold฀regular฀meetings,฀like฀ the฀European฀Association฀of฀Social฀Anthropologists,฀which฀developed฀ in฀the฀late฀1980s.฀Common฀problems฀that฀we฀are฀now฀facing฀in฀Asian฀ regions฀ could฀ be฀ discussed,฀ such฀ as฀ development,฀ the฀ environment,฀ migration,฀and฀ethnic฀conflict.฀Such฀a฀network฀would฀enable฀us฀to฀send฀ messages฀from฀Asia฀to฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀world,฀rather฀than฀just฀receiving฀ messages฀from฀the฀centers฀of฀North฀America฀and฀Europe.

Beyond฀the฀Center-Periphery฀Dichotomy:฀Toward฀ Interactive฀Anthropology At฀ a฀ session฀ called฀ “Anthropology:฀ A฀ Critical฀ Review฀ from฀ Japan,”฀ which฀Jerry฀Eades฀and฀I฀organized฀at฀the฀annual฀meeting฀of฀the฀AAA฀

Reshaping฀Anthropology฀ ฀ 45

in฀San฀Francisco฀in฀1996,฀we฀discussed฀future฀links฀among฀Asian฀anthropologists.฀Our฀discussant,฀Stanley฀Tambiah,฀warned฀about฀the฀dangers฀ of฀isolationism฀in฀Asian฀anthropology,฀which฀might฀be฀harmful฀to฀the฀ development฀of฀a฀world฀anthropology.฀Of฀course฀we฀do฀not฀want฀to฀be฀ isolationist.฀We฀are฀not฀advocating฀Asian฀anthropology฀in฀opposition฀ to฀Western฀anthropology.฀Rather,฀we฀are฀seeking฀the฀possibility฀of฀an฀ “interactive฀anthropology”฀by฀taking฀Asia฀as฀a฀test฀case. The฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀set฀up฀a฀special฀committee฀to฀promote฀international฀links฀in฀1996.฀The฀society฀has฀already฀attempted฀ to฀internationalize฀by฀inviting฀distinguished฀scholars฀from฀abroad฀to฀ its฀annual฀meetings:฀David฀Maybury-Lewis฀(1995),฀Benedict฀Anderson฀ (1996),฀ Stanley฀ Tambiah฀ (1997),฀ Marshall฀ Sahlins฀ and฀ Richard฀ Fox฀ (1998),฀and฀D.฀F.฀Eichelman฀(1999).฀Even฀though฀it฀is฀useful฀to฀listen฀ to฀major฀scholars฀from฀the฀center,฀we฀also฀believe฀it฀is฀important฀to฀ organize฀substantive฀meetings฀on฀particular฀topics฀in฀Japan฀together฀ with฀overseas฀scholars,฀and฀to฀participate฀in฀overseas฀meetings฀so฀that฀ Japanese฀scholars฀can฀gain฀exposure฀to฀the฀international฀anthropological฀ community. In฀ order฀ to฀ broaden฀ these฀ efforts฀ to฀ internationalize฀ the฀ society,฀ a฀ new฀ journal฀ in฀ English,฀ The฀ Japanese฀ Review฀ of฀ Cultural฀ Anthropology,฀ was฀launched฀in฀1998,฀to฀provide฀a฀channel฀of฀communication฀and฀to฀ make฀Japanese฀anthropology฀more฀visible฀internationally.฀This฀is฀only฀ one฀of฀a฀series฀of฀recent฀initiatives.฀To฀mention฀just฀two฀others,฀a฀new฀ journal฀called฀Asian฀Anthropology฀was฀established฀in฀2002;฀it฀is฀published฀ by฀the฀Chinese฀University฀Press฀for฀the฀Hong฀Kong฀Anthropological฀ Society฀and฀the฀Department฀of฀Anthropology฀at฀the฀Chinese฀University฀ of฀Hong฀Kong.฀Jerry฀Eades฀and฀I฀have฀started฀a฀monograph฀series,฀“Asian฀ Anthropologies,”฀with฀Berghahn฀Books,฀also฀aimed฀at฀Asian฀scholars.฀ The฀reason฀for฀these฀initiatives฀is฀that฀anthropologists฀based฀in฀Asia฀wish฀ to฀have฀their฀voices฀heard฀within฀the฀wider฀community฀of฀anthropology.฀ These฀attempts฀will฀form฀the฀basis฀of฀an฀interactive฀anthropology.฀In฀ this฀way,฀we฀want฀to฀create฀anthropologies฀beyond฀national฀boundaries฀ in฀Asia. Furthermore,฀we฀should฀create฀an฀open฀academic฀forum฀in฀which฀ to฀ develop฀ interactive฀ anthropology฀ at฀ the฀ global฀ level.฀ Following฀ Kuwayama฀(1997:฀541),฀by฀“open”฀I฀mean฀“the฀kind฀of฀representation฀ that฀posits฀a฀diverse฀audience,฀both฀native฀and฀non-native,฀which฀contrasts฀with฀the฀‘closed’฀representation฀that฀has฀assumed,฀as฀in฀the฀past,฀ a฀ homogeneous฀ audience฀ from฀ one’s฀ own฀ cultural฀ community.”฀ For฀ this฀purpose,฀as฀Kuwayama฀also฀suggested,฀we฀may฀need฀a฀new฀journal฀ “in฀which฀native฀scholars฀comment฀on฀articles฀by฀non-native฀scholars,฀

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Shinji Yamashita

who฀ in฀ turn฀ reply฀ to฀ the฀ comments฀ they฀ have฀ received,฀ thereby฀ reconceptualizing฀ their฀ ethnographic฀ observations฀ in฀ both฀ native฀ and฀ non-native฀contexts”฀(1997:฀541). The฀major฀problem฀for฀Japanese฀anthropologists,฀however,฀remains฀ that฀of฀language.฀We฀know฀that฀few฀foreigners,฀apart฀from฀specialists฀ in฀Japan,฀can฀read฀works฀written฀in฀Japanese.฀This฀is฀an฀obstacle฀not฀ only฀for฀American฀and฀European฀audiences฀but฀even฀for฀audiences฀in฀ other฀countries฀of฀Asia.฀On฀the฀other฀hand,฀if฀we฀write฀in฀English,฀then฀ Japanese฀readers฀are฀reluctant฀to฀read฀us.฀Furthermore,฀by฀writing฀in฀ English,฀we฀may฀simply฀play฀along฀with฀Western฀academic฀hegemony,฀ because฀modes฀of฀thinking฀and฀presentation฀differ฀according฀to฀language.฀ We฀Japanese฀are฀handicapped฀in฀this฀respect฀because฀we฀lack฀experience฀ in฀both฀speaking฀and฀writing฀English,฀the฀language฀of฀hegemony,฀and฀ in฀Western฀styles฀of฀presentation฀and฀publication.฀But฀we฀do฀not฀want฀ to฀ close฀ up฀ the฀ country—which฀ in฀ any฀ case฀ is฀ no฀ longer฀ an฀ option฀ in฀ this฀ transnational฀ age.฀ There฀ will฀ be฀ no฀ future฀ for฀ Japanese฀ and฀ Asian฀anthropology฀without฀a฀transnational฀and฀global฀perspective฀in฀ which฀we฀can฀create฀our฀anthropology฀by฀negotiating฀our฀identities฀with฀ others,฀just฀as฀is฀the฀case฀with฀other฀cultural฀practices฀in฀our฀age.

Conclusion In฀a฀paper฀titled฀“Anthropological฀Futures,”฀Adam฀Kuper฀(1994:฀115)฀ suggested฀ the฀ importance฀ of฀ developments฀ in฀ anthropology฀ outside฀ the฀Western฀metropolitan฀centers.฀Japanese฀anthropology฀is฀one฀such฀ non-Western฀anthropology฀with฀its฀own฀history฀and฀its฀own฀character.฀ However,฀as฀I฀hope฀I฀have฀shown,฀the฀meaning฀of฀“own”฀may฀be฀complicated.฀If฀Japan฀has฀its฀own฀anthropology,฀it฀is฀only฀so฀within฀this฀ complexity,฀and฀if฀the฀experiences฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀that฀I฀have฀ discussed฀can฀provide฀some฀insights฀into฀ways฀of฀reshaping฀anthropology฀in฀the฀future,฀then฀it฀is฀again฀so฀within฀the฀complexity฀of฀Japanese฀ anthropology. The฀focal฀point฀of฀this฀reshaping฀is฀to฀create฀and฀develop฀an฀open฀forum฀ in฀which฀various฀anthropologies฀in฀the฀world฀can฀meet฀on฀equal฀footing.฀ There฀are฀two฀points฀to฀note฀in฀this฀regard.฀First,฀while฀admitting฀the฀ hegemonic฀role฀of฀Western฀anthropology,฀one฀needs฀also฀to฀emphasize฀ that฀the฀gaze฀from฀the฀periphery฀strengthens฀the฀system฀academically.฀ Peripherals฀can฀play฀a฀positive฀and฀critical฀role,฀and฀this฀is฀important฀ especially฀in฀the฀world฀that฀now฀exists฀after฀September฀11,฀2001.฀We,฀ the฀ anthropological฀ others฀ for฀ the฀ West-centered฀ academic฀ world฀ system,฀should฀play฀a฀more฀assertive฀role฀in฀helping฀to฀create฀a฀global฀ anthropology,฀rather฀than฀simply฀criticizing฀Western฀hegemony.

Reshaping฀Anthropology฀ ฀ 47

Second,฀ although฀ anthropological฀ traditions฀ may฀ vary฀ between฀ countries,฀anthropology฀is฀also฀transnational.฀Throughout฀its฀history,฀ Japanese฀anthropology฀has฀not฀been฀an฀isolated฀phenomenon฀but฀rather฀ a฀product฀of฀the฀intersection฀of฀various฀anthropological฀traditions฀in฀ the฀world.฀The฀multiplex฀and฀hybrid฀identity฀of฀Japanese฀anthropology฀ may฀ be฀ important,฀ because฀ an฀ open฀ forum฀ of฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ should฀consist฀not฀of฀representatives฀of฀national฀anthropologies฀but฀of฀ transnational฀anthropologists฀who฀are฀located฀somewhere฀in฀between.฀ In฀this฀sense,฀the฀anthropology฀of฀the฀future฀will฀be฀constructed฀on฀the฀ basis฀of฀the฀“glocal”฀(Robertson฀1995),฀or฀“global-local,”฀interaction.

Notes 1.฀ In฀April฀2004฀the฀Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀changed฀its฀name฀to฀the฀ Japanese฀Society฀of฀Cultural฀Anthropology.฀The฀main฀reason฀was฀that฀“cultural฀ anthropology”฀ is฀ much฀ more฀ extensively฀ used฀ than฀ “ethnology”฀ (or฀ “social฀ anthropology”)฀ in฀ contemporary฀ Japanese฀ society.฀ In฀ Japan,฀ sociocultural฀ anthropology฀ and฀ biological฀ anthropology฀ form฀ separate฀ associations,฀ with฀ no฀single฀umbrella฀association฀to฀link฀them. 2.฀ The฀Anthropology฀Newsletter฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀Association฀ (vol.฀ 43,฀ no.฀ 8,฀ November฀ 2002,฀ p.฀ 10)฀ mentions฀ the฀ work฀ of฀ the฀ Japanese฀ Society฀of฀Ethnology฀and฀the฀Anthropological฀Society฀of฀Nippon฀in฀promoting฀ ties฀with฀other฀anthropological฀organizations฀across฀the฀globe. 3.฀ I฀draw฀on฀material฀from฀a฀paper฀I฀co-authored฀with฀Joseph฀Bosco฀and฀Jerry฀ Eades฀(Yamashita,฀Bosco,฀and฀Eades฀2004),฀together฀with฀an฀earlier฀book-review฀ article฀on฀anthropology฀and฀colonialism฀in฀Asia฀and฀Oceania฀(Yamashita฀2001)฀ and฀a฀paper฀presented฀at฀the฀annual฀meeting฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀ Association฀in฀New฀Orleans฀in฀November฀2002฀(Yamashita฀2002). 4.฀ I฀was฀a฀visiting฀scholar฀at฀Cornell฀University฀in฀Ithaca,฀New฀York,฀from฀ July฀1981฀to฀March฀1983,฀at฀Cambridge฀University฀in฀England฀from฀April฀to฀ July฀1983,฀and฀at฀the฀University฀of฀California–Berkeley฀from฀September฀1998฀ to฀August฀1999. 5.฀ During฀this฀period,฀Torii฀was฀associated฀with฀the฀Department฀of฀Oriental฀ History฀ of฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Tokyo,฀ founded฀ by฀ the฀ historian฀ Kurakichi฀ Shiratori,฀ the฀ founder฀ of฀ to¯yo ¯฀ shigaku,฀ or฀ “Oriental฀ history,”฀ in฀ Japan฀ (see฀ Tanaka฀1993).฀I฀presume฀that฀Torii฀established฀his฀“Oriental฀ethnology”฀under฀ Shiratori’s฀influence.

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Shinji Yamashita

฀ 6.฀ Rather฀ confusingly,฀ there฀ are฀ two฀ words฀ pronounced฀ minzokugaku฀ in฀ Japanese,฀ though฀ they฀ are฀ written฀ differently฀ in฀ Chinese฀ characters.฀ Minzokugaku฀can฀therefore฀mean฀either฀“ethnology”฀or฀“folklore฀studies,”฀depending฀on฀the฀characters฀used. ฀ 7.฀ Generally฀ speaking,฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ non-Western฀ countries฀ study฀ people฀in฀their฀own฀countries฀rather฀than฀foreign฀others.฀Malaysian฀anthropologists,฀ for฀ instance,฀ study฀ Malaysians,฀ and฀ Indonesian฀ anthropologists฀ study฀ Indonesians.฀ This฀ is฀ different฀ from฀ Western฀ colonial฀ anthropology,฀ in฀which฀the฀British฀studied฀Malaysians฀and฀the฀Dutch฀studied฀Indonesians฀ as฀ colonial฀ others.฀ Japan฀ combines฀ the฀ two฀ traditions:฀ a฀ flourishing฀ school฀ of฀ research฀ on฀ Japan,฀ particularly฀ in฀ folklore,฀ coexists฀ with฀ anthropological฀ research฀outside฀Japan,฀which฀arose฀out฀of฀colonialism. ฀ 8.฀ Of฀the฀word฀“twist,”฀Kuwayama฀(1997:฀521)฀noted฀that฀it฀might฀imply฀ the฀ “inauthentic”฀ character฀ of฀ Japanese฀ anthropology,฀ in฀ comparison฀ with฀ “authentic”฀Western฀anthropology. ฀ 9.฀ Lévi-Strauss฀(1967:฀344)฀pointed฀out฀some฀fifty฀years฀ago฀that฀anthropology฀was฀not฀distinguished฀from฀the฀other฀human฀and฀social฀sciences฀by฀an฀ area฀of฀study฀that฀was฀peculiar฀to฀it฀alone. 10.฀ At฀ the฀ AAA฀ annual฀ meeting฀ in฀ November฀ 2001฀ in฀ Washington,฀ DC,฀ Judith฀Freidenberg฀and฀June฀Nash฀organized฀a฀panel฀called฀“Institutionalizing฀ the฀Discipline฀of฀Anthropology฀in฀International฀Arenas.”฀This฀may฀have฀been฀ an฀ attempt฀ to฀ internationalize฀ American฀ anthropology,฀ especially฀ after฀ the฀ events฀of฀September฀11,฀2001.฀For฀a฀cynical฀criticism฀of฀this฀panel,฀see฀Moeran฀ 2002. 11.฀ One฀ might฀ mention฀ here฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ the฀ Anthropologists฀ of฀ Japan฀in฀Japan฀(AJJ)฀network,฀which฀consists฀mainly฀of฀foreign฀scholars฀working฀ in฀ Japan,฀ together฀ with฀ some฀ Japanese฀ scholars฀ trained฀ overseas.฀ It฀ currently฀has฀between฀60฀and฀70฀regular฀participants.

t h r e e

Transformations in Siberian Anthropology An Insider’s Perspective

Nikolai Vakhtin

T

he฀idea฀of฀anthropological฀(ethnographic)฀research฀came฀to฀Russia฀ from฀Germany฀in฀the฀early฀mid-nineteenth฀century,฀together฀with฀the฀ Romantic฀idea฀of฀the฀nation-state฀(Schweitzer฀2001).฀The฀vast฀expanses฀ of฀Siberia,฀populated฀by฀several฀dozen฀indigenous฀peoples,฀were,฀along฀ with฀Central฀Asia฀and฀the฀Caucasus,฀natural฀fields฀for฀anthropological฀ research.1฀Siberian฀anthropology฀was฀particularly฀reinforced฀by฀the฀Jesup฀ North฀Pacific฀Expedition฀(1897–1902),฀intellectually฀designed฀and฀led฀ by฀Franz฀Boas.฀This฀event฀and฀its฀consequent฀research฀and฀publishing฀ shaped,฀ to฀ a฀ great฀ extent,฀ the฀ Russian฀ anthropological฀ paradigm฀ in฀ the฀first฀two฀decades฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century,฀making฀it฀part฀of฀the฀ international฀anthropological฀scene฀(see฀Krupnik฀and฀Vakhtin฀2003). Simultaneously,฀ the฀ specific฀ character฀ of฀ Russian฀ colonialism,฀ as฀ well฀as฀the฀theoretical฀mainstream฀of฀Soviet฀ethnography,฀determined฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ Siberian฀ anthropology฀ in฀ two฀ respects:฀ it฀ was฀ ethnohistorically฀biased฀and฀it฀had฀an฀emphatic฀eschatological฀disposition.฀Russian฀(Soviet)฀ethnographers฀viewed฀the฀objects฀of฀their฀research฀ as฀people฀who฀would฀soon฀become฀“like฀us”—hence฀their฀restraint฀from฀ studies฀of฀contemporary฀conditions฀of฀“the฀native฀peoples”฀and฀their฀ tendency฀ to฀ study฀ ethnic฀ history.฀ And฀ because฀ the฀ objects฀ of฀ study฀ were฀supposed฀to฀disappear฀soon฀and฀merge฀into฀a฀homogeneous฀mass฀ (whether฀“citizens฀of฀the฀empire”฀or฀“the฀Soviet฀people”),฀ethnologists’฀ primary฀mission฀was฀to฀record฀this฀vanishing฀past—an฀approach฀Susan฀ Gal฀(1989)฀called฀“pastoralist.”

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50฀

Nikolai Vakhtin

This฀ tendency฀ was฀ reinforced฀ in฀ Soviet฀ times฀ by฀ fierce฀ ideological฀ pressure:฀ the฀ present฀ was฀ to฀ be฀ described฀ solely฀ in฀ accordance฀ with฀ ideologically฀approved฀prescriptions.฀This฀was฀true฀for฀descriptions฀of฀ the฀past฀as฀well,฀but฀the฀margin฀of฀free฀choice฀for฀social฀research฀into฀the฀ present฀was฀much฀narrower.฀It฀was฀safer฀to฀turn฀away฀from฀the฀present฀ and฀focus฀on฀the฀past.฀This฀trend,฀together฀with฀ideological฀censorship฀ and฀ a฀ language฀ barrier,฀ created฀ a฀ deep฀ breach฀ between฀ Russian฀ and฀ Western฀anthropological฀traditions. The฀situation฀in฀Siberian฀research฀changed฀after฀1989.฀Siberian฀anthropology฀ has฀ once฀ again฀ become฀ internationalized฀ through฀ fieldwork฀ done฀in฀Siberia฀by฀scores฀of฀Western฀anthropologists฀(with฀a฀large฀share฀ of฀joint฀projects),฀as฀well฀as฀by฀intensive฀academic฀contacts.฀This฀new฀ development฀has฀revealed฀interesting฀discrepancies฀between฀the฀two฀ traditions,฀such฀as฀different฀approaches฀to฀the฀object฀of฀study,฀contrasting฀ theoretical฀frameworks,฀different฀attitudes฀toward฀sharing฀outcomes฀of฀ research,฀and฀different฀ethical฀procedures฀and฀requirements.

Siberian฀Anthropology฀at฀the฀Turn฀of฀the฀Twentieth฀ Century:฀An฀International฀Enterprise Although฀ until฀ the฀ late฀ eighteenth฀ century฀ foreigners฀ made฀ up฀ the฀ majority฀of฀Siberian฀researchers,฀they฀were,฀as฀a฀rule,฀employed฀by฀the฀ Russian฀state,฀usually฀by฀the฀Academy฀of฀Sciences,฀and฀they฀worked฀ in฀ close฀ contact฀ with฀ Russian฀ scholars.฀ Some฀ “foreigners”฀ stayed฀ in฀ Russia฀for฀relatively฀short฀periods฀and฀viewed฀their฀assignments฀there฀ as฀ temporary;฀ others฀ spent฀ their฀ entire฀ professional฀ lives฀ in฀ Russia฀ and฀considered฀themselves฀part฀of฀Russian฀science฀(Schweitzer฀2001:฀ 268ff.). Individual฀travelers฀such฀as฀Mattias฀Kastren,฀Karl฀von฀Ditmar,฀and฀ Gerhard฀Maidel฀visited฀the฀“Land฀of฀Siberia”฀in฀the฀1850s฀and฀1860s฀ and฀ left฀ valuable฀ descriptions฀ of฀ it฀ (see,฀ for฀ example,฀ Kastren฀ 1860;฀ Maidel฀1894;฀von฀Ditmar฀1901;฀compare฀with฀Schweitzer฀2001:฀112–16).฀ Still,฀in฀the฀first฀two-thirds฀of฀the฀nineteenth฀century,฀Siberia,฀a฀vast฀ and฀remote฀country฀with฀a฀sparse฀population฀and฀few฀literati,฀was฀not฀ a฀particularly฀fascinating฀field฀for฀regular฀research฀in฀Russian฀science.฀ Only฀in฀the฀last฀third฀of฀the฀century฀did฀ethnology฀and฀ethnography฀ develop฀in฀Russia฀into฀independent฀and฀popular฀academic฀disciplines.฀ In฀1889฀the฀first฀issue฀of฀Etnograficheskoe฀obozrenie฀(Ethnographic฀survey)฀ was฀published,฀and฀in฀1890,฀the฀first฀issue฀of฀Zhivaya฀starina฀(Living฀ antiquity).2฀In฀1894฀the฀academician฀Vladimir฀Radlov฀became฀director฀ of฀the฀Kunstkamera฀museum฀in฀St.฀Petersburg,฀which฀became,฀under฀

Transformations฀in฀Siberian฀Anthropology฀ ฀ 51

his฀leadership,฀an฀active฀and฀modern฀research฀institution฀(Schweitzer฀ 2001:฀138–42). In฀the฀1880s,฀interest฀in฀Siberian฀research฀increased฀with฀the฀growth฀ of฀the฀urban,฀educated฀population฀there.฀Sections฀of฀the฀Russian฀Geographical฀Society฀were฀established฀in฀Siberia฀(first฀in฀Irkutsk฀and฀later฀in฀ the฀Far฀East;฀Shirina฀1983,฀1993).฀In฀1888฀the฀first฀Siberian฀university฀was฀ opened฀in฀Tomsk฀(Schweitzer฀2001:฀137).฀The฀famous฀Jesup฀North฀Pacific฀ Expedition฀(JNPE)฀played฀an฀important฀role฀in฀encouraging฀ethnological฀ research฀in฀Siberia฀(especially฀in฀its฀northeastern฀part),฀as฀did฀the฀fact฀ that฀several฀Russian฀scholars฀were฀able฀to฀take฀part฀in฀its฀work. The฀JNPE,฀planned,฀organized,฀and฀carried฀out฀by฀Franz฀Boas,฀was฀a฀ major฀enterprise฀(for฀details฀of฀the฀expedition,฀see,฀e.g.,฀Fitzhugh฀and฀ Krupnik฀ 2001;฀ Freed,฀ Freed,฀ and฀ Williamson฀ 1988;฀ Schweitzer฀ 2001:฀ 153ff.;฀Vakhtin฀2001).฀It฀so฀happened฀that฀two,฀and฀later฀three,฀Russian฀ scholars฀ became฀ members฀ of฀ the฀ expedition—and฀ simultaneously฀ became฀informal฀students฀of฀Boas’s.฀These฀men,฀who฀had฀when฀young฀ participated฀ in฀ the฀ revolutionary฀ movement,฀ were฀ members฀ of฀ the฀ Narodnaya฀Volia฀(People’s฀Freedom)฀insurgent฀party;฀in฀the฀1880s฀they฀ were฀arrested฀and฀exiled฀to฀Siberia฀for฀ten฀years.฀There฀they฀became฀ interested฀ in฀ indigenous฀ languages฀ and฀ ethnographies,฀ conducted฀ field฀ research,฀ and฀ collected฀ anthropological฀ data.฀ They฀ returned฀ to฀ St.฀Petersburg฀just฀at฀the฀time฀Boas฀wrote฀to฀Radlov฀asking฀him฀to฀help฀ find฀specialists฀in฀Siberian฀ethnography฀for฀his฀expedition. These฀three฀men—Vladimir฀Bogoraz,฀Vladimir฀Jochelson,฀and฀later฀ Leo฀Sternberg—became,฀during฀the฀1910s฀and฀1920s,฀the฀“founding฀ fathers”฀of฀Siberian฀studies.฀Bogoraz฀and฀Sternberg฀organized฀the฀famous฀ Institute฀of฀the฀People฀of฀the฀North,฀and฀all฀three฀were฀active฀members฀ of฀the฀Committee฀of฀the฀North฀(1921–35).฀They฀not฀only฀determined,฀ in฀ the฀ early฀ years฀ of฀ the฀ Soviet฀ regime,฀ the฀ directions,฀ format,฀ and฀ theoretical฀framework฀of฀anthropological฀education฀and฀research฀but฀ also฀considerably฀influenced฀Soviet฀policy฀toward฀Siberian฀indigenous฀ peoples฀ and฀ their฀ languages฀ in฀ the฀ 1920s฀ (on฀ Soviet฀ national฀ and฀ language฀policy,฀see,฀e.g.,฀Alpatov฀1994,฀1997;฀Kreindler฀1984;฀Silver฀ 1974;฀Slezkine฀1996;฀Vakhtin฀2003). Among฀other฀things,฀the฀JNPE฀produced฀for฀the฀first฀time฀in฀Siberian฀ anthropology฀ a฀ stream฀ of฀ dozens฀ of฀ contributions฀ under฀ a฀ common฀ agenda฀ that฀ were฀ written,฀ edited,฀ translated,฀ and฀ delivered฀ across฀ language฀and฀political฀barriers฀for฀almost฀thirty฀years.3฀The฀partnership฀ established฀during฀the฀years฀of฀the฀project฀was฀seemingly฀on฀its฀way฀to฀ being฀extended฀to฀the฀second฀generation฀of฀scholars฀nurtured฀by฀the฀ original฀JNPE฀members—a฀development฀that฀never฀happened฀(Krupnik฀ and฀Vakhtin฀2003),฀as฀we฀will฀see฀later.

52฀

Nikolai Vakhtin

During฀this฀period,฀Russian฀and฀Western฀research฀in฀and฀on฀Siberia฀ went฀ hand฀ in฀ hand,฀ supporting฀ and฀ nourishing฀ each฀ other฀ in฀ both฀ theoretical฀approaches฀and฀field฀data.4฀The฀new฀academic฀discipline,฀ ethnology,฀developed฀triumphantly฀in฀Western฀Europe฀and฀the฀United฀ States฀ and฀ strongly฀ influenced฀ Russian฀ ethnological฀ thinking,฀ the฀ mottoes฀of฀which฀at฀the฀time฀were฀pragmatism฀and฀descriptive฀fieldwork฀ (Slezkine฀1993:฀114;฀compare฀Schweitzer฀2001).

An฀Air-Tight฀Vault:฀Post-1917฀Soviet฀Siberianists After฀ the฀ 1917฀ revolution฀ in฀ Russia,฀ Russian฀ and฀ European–North฀ American฀ethnologies฀took฀different฀paths.฀In฀the฀first฀years฀after฀the฀ revolution,฀certain฀innovative฀tendencies฀emerged฀in฀Russian฀ethnology฀ that฀ had฀ been฀ formed฀ on฀ common฀ grounds฀ with,฀ and฀ not฀ without฀ influence฀ from,฀ those฀ in฀ Europe:฀ “Scholars฀ moved฀ from฀ diachrony฀ and฀historicism฀to฀synchrony,฀function,฀and฀structure”฀(Slezkine฀1996:฀ 830).฀From฀a฀different฀perspective,฀these฀tendencies฀can฀be฀defined฀as฀ “internationalist.” Without฀going฀into฀details,฀let฀me฀simply฀refer฀to฀one฀example฀from฀ a฀ “hard-boiled฀ evolutionist,”฀ Leo฀ Sternberg.฀ In฀ an฀ address฀ given฀ in฀ 1921฀before฀the฀annual฀meeting฀of฀the฀Geographic฀Institute,฀Sternberg฀ formulated฀the฀scholarly฀paradigm฀that฀he฀and฀his฀colleagues฀had฀made฀ the฀backbone฀of฀the฀institute’s฀teaching฀program—the฀essence฀of฀its฀ ethnological฀ education฀ and฀ research.5฀ Although฀ this฀ paradigm฀ was฀ clearly฀evolutionist,฀it฀regarded฀ethnicity฀not฀as฀an฀intrinsic฀characteristic฀of฀all฀people฀but฀rather฀as฀a฀surface฀representation฀of฀inner฀unity.฀ The฀cornerstone฀of฀the฀paradigm฀was฀the฀idea฀of฀a฀united฀humankind:฀ equality฀and฀fraternity฀of฀all฀peoples,฀regardless฀of฀their฀place฀on฀the฀ “ladder฀of฀civilization.”฀According฀to฀Sternberg,฀ethnology฀was฀a฀science฀ that฀was฀supposed฀to฀demonstrate,฀through฀exact฀analytical฀methods฀ and฀numerous฀collected฀facts—the฀“inexhaustible฀treasury฀of฀facts฀about฀ the฀life฀of฀all฀peoples,฀all฀stages฀of฀culture,฀all฀epochs”—the฀universal฀ character฀of฀human฀culture฀(Sternberg฀n.d.:฀25). Other฀ scholars฀ of฀ the฀ time฀ formulated฀ similar฀ ideas:฀ the฀ historian฀ N.฀M.฀Pokrovskii,฀the฀linguist฀N.฀Ia.฀Marr,฀and฀those฀linguists฀who฀were฀ active฀in฀the฀1920s฀in฀the฀language฀policy฀movement.6฀Publications฀of฀ the฀time฀about฀“the฀national฀question,”฀languages,฀writing฀systems,฀and฀ alphabets฀were฀full฀of฀statements฀emphasizing฀the฀necessity,฀value,฀and฀ advantages฀of฀giving฀equal฀support฀to฀all฀cultures฀and฀all฀languages,฀ regardless฀of฀numbers฀of฀speakers฀(see,฀for฀example,฀publications฀in฀the฀ official฀bulletin฀of฀the฀Ministry฀of฀Education).7฀Instruction฀in฀and฀on฀

Transformations฀in฀Siberian฀Anthropology฀ ฀ 53

native฀languages฀was฀introduced฀in฀all฀non-Russian฀primary฀schools฀ in฀the฀country—this฀was,฀at฀the฀time,฀the฀leitmotif฀of฀language฀and฀ ethnic฀policy.8 The฀ ideas฀ of฀ the฀ “internationalists”฀ were฀ no฀ doubt฀ connected฀ to฀ political฀tendencies฀of฀the฀time—tendencies฀that฀quickly฀became฀less฀ favorable.฀The฀archaeologist฀S.฀N.฀Bykovsky฀wrote:฀“Zealously฀looking฀ for฀ethnic฀or฀national฀features฀of฀a฀culture฀.฀.฀.฀an฀educated฀archaeologist฀ .฀.฀.฀is฀‘scientifically’฀endorsing฀the฀right฀of฀imperialists฀to฀snatch฀some฀ territory฀or฀other”฀(1934,฀quoted฀in฀Shnirelman฀1993:฀56).฀As฀Victor฀ Shnirelman฀rightfully฀commented฀(1993:฀58),฀“ethnogenetic฀studies— that฀ is,฀ attempts฀ to฀ trace฀ specific฀ ways฀ of฀ formation฀ of฀ individual฀ peoples—were฀ impossible฀ under฀ Stalin’s฀ internationalism.฀ A฀ scholar฀ who฀ risked฀ doing฀ this฀ would฀ be฀ accused฀ of฀ imperial฀ chauvinism฀ or฀ local฀nationalism.”9 Efforts฀ were฀ made,฀ of฀ course,฀ to฀ reestablish฀ the฀ true฀ international฀ format฀of฀Siberian฀research,฀but฀in฀this฀context฀they฀looked฀naïve.฀Franz฀ Boas฀made฀one฀such฀effort,฀emphasizing฀in฀a฀letter฀to฀the฀Russian฀Academy฀of฀Science฀that฀“at฀the฀present฀time,฀the฀contact฀between฀American฀ and฀Russian฀science฀is฀insufficient฀.฀.฀.฀It฀is,฀therefore,฀highly฀desirable฀that฀ an฀exchange฀of฀young฀scientists฀should฀be฀developed.฀This฀is฀particularly฀ necessary฀in฀the฀domain฀of฀anthropology.”฀The฀remainder฀of฀the฀letter฀ offered฀an฀exchange฀program฀for฀young฀scholars.10฀In฀1928฀Boas฀was฀ still฀trying฀to฀restore฀lost฀contacts฀with฀his฀Russian฀colleagues;฀the฀letter,฀ to฀my฀knowledge,฀was฀never฀answered. Attempts฀to฀reestablish฀contact฀were฀made฀from฀the฀other฀side฀as฀well,฀ especially฀from฀what฀might฀be฀called฀“the฀second฀Jesup฀generation”฀ (Krupnik฀and฀Vakhtin฀2003).฀A฀student฀of฀Bogoraz’s,฀Alexander฀Forstein,฀ went฀to฀Denmark฀in฀1936฀as฀a฀research฀fellow฀at฀the฀National฀Museum฀ of฀Copenhagen.11฀From฀there฀he฀wrote฀to฀Boas฀(30฀June฀1936)฀inquiring฀ about฀ an฀ opportunity฀ to฀ come฀ to฀ the฀ United฀ States฀ on฀ a฀ long-term฀ research฀ grant.฀ “Any฀ interruption฀ of฀ our฀ connections฀ with฀ America฀ would฀ be฀ a฀ very฀ painful฀ loss฀ indeed,”฀ he฀ said.฀ Boas฀ answered฀ on฀ 20฀ August฀ 1936,฀ saying,฀ “Pardon฀ the฀ long฀ delay฀ of฀ my฀ answer฀ to฀ your฀ letter฀.฀.฀.฀I฀did฀not฀know฀what฀to฀answer.฀I฀have฀retired฀this฀year฀from฀ active฀teaching฀.฀.฀.฀I฀believe฀that฀work฀in฀America฀might฀be฀very฀useful฀ for฀you฀but฀I฀do฀not฀know฀just฀what฀to฀suggest.” The฀era฀of฀internationalism฀ended฀by฀1934,฀when,฀at฀the฀seventeenth฀ Communist฀Party฀Congress,฀Stalin฀announced฀that฀the฀principle฀enemy฀ now฀was฀local฀nationalism.฀In฀1936฀Pokrovskii’s฀approach฀to฀history฀ was฀purged,฀together฀with฀many฀historians;฀the฀concept฀of฀the฀Russian฀ people฀was฀rehabilitated฀as฀a฀legitimate฀object฀of฀research฀(Shnirelman฀

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1993:฀58).฀The฀orientation฀of฀Soviet฀ethnography฀(as฀well฀as฀archaeology฀ and฀linguistics)฀changed฀from฀internationalist฀ideas฀to฀concepts฀of฀ethnic฀ specificity฀and฀research฀into฀the฀histories฀of฀individual฀ethnic฀groups.฀ Shnirelman฀(1993:฀54–56)฀connected฀these฀changes฀with฀changes฀in฀ Stalin’s฀general฀politics:฀at฀about฀this฀time,฀hope฀for฀the฀world฀revolution฀ died฀ out,฀ and฀ it฀ became฀ clear฀ that฀ the฀ only฀ plausible฀ policy฀ for฀ the฀ Bolsheviks฀was฀to฀establish฀a฀strong฀Soviet฀state—to฀“recreate,฀under฀the฀ guise฀of฀the฀Soviet฀Union,฀the฀political฀and฀administrative฀structure฀of฀the฀ [Russian]฀Empire.”฀Similar฀changes฀took฀place฀in฀language฀policy.฀With฀ all฀the฀violence฀of฀Stalin’s฀methods,฀a฀turn฀was฀made฀to฀predominant฀ support฀of฀the฀national฀language,฀Russian—that฀is,฀in฀Vladimir฀Alpatov’s฀ terms฀(1994),฀to฀“normal”฀language฀policy฀in฀a฀multiethnic฀state฀moving฀ toward฀industrialization. For฀ ethnology,฀ this฀ had฀ serious฀ consequences:฀ it฀ brought฀ a฀ “sharp฀ downturn฀ in฀ the฀ fortunes฀ of฀ unorthodox฀ intellectuals฀ in฀ the฀ Soviet฀ Union”฀(Brandist฀2002a:฀9).฀Whereas฀in฀the฀1920s฀anthropologists฀carried฀ out฀extensive฀fieldwork฀in฀spite฀of฀the฀country’s฀financial฀condition,฀by฀ the฀mid-1930s฀their฀work฀was฀almost฀totally฀stopped,฀and฀ethnography฀ “became฀nothing฀but฀a฀theory฀of฀primitive฀communism”฀(Slezkine฀1993:฀ 120).฀In฀1932฀N.฀M.฀Matorin,฀a฀leading฀Soviet฀ethnographer,฀declared฀ that฀to฀continue฀fieldwork฀under฀modern฀conditions฀was฀imperialism.฀ He฀also฀claimed฀that฀ethnographers฀had฀no฀right฀to฀study฀contemporary฀ issues:฀ there฀ was฀ nothing฀ specifically฀ “ethnographic”฀ about฀ modern฀kolkhozy,฀or฀collective฀farms฀(Matorin฀1931:฀20–21,฀quoted฀in฀ Slezkine฀1993:฀120).฀Ethnology฀and฀ethnography฀in฀the฀Soviet฀Union฀ were฀ declared,฀ for฀ almost฀ ten฀ years,฀ redundant฀ and฀ useless฀ (indeed,฀ the฀Russian฀epithet฀for฀them,฀vrednyi,฀is฀better฀translated฀as฀“evil,”฀or฀ “sinister”).฀Serious฀research฀was฀terminated.฀For฀many฀years฀beginning฀ in฀ the฀ mid-1930s,฀ the฀ main฀ research฀ topic฀ for฀ Soviet฀ ethnographers฀ became฀ ethnogenesis,฀ that฀ is,฀ archaeological฀ and฀ ethnographic,฀ and฀ partly฀linguistic,฀investigation฀of฀the฀formation฀of฀“ethnoses,”฀or฀ethnic฀ groups.฀From฀this฀point฀onward,฀mutual฀understanding฀between฀Soviet฀ ethnography฀and฀Western฀anthropology฀began฀to฀decrease฀(Shnirelman฀ 1993:฀ 52).฀ Soviet฀ ethnographers฀ did฀ not฀ do฀ research฀ on฀ “cultures”;฀ rather,฀ their฀ main฀ task฀ was฀ to฀ capture,฀ understand,฀ and฀ glorify฀ the฀ imperceptible฀“ethnos”฀(Slezkine฀2001:฀362–63). In฀1932,฀a฀Moscow฀meeting฀of฀Soviet฀archaeologists฀and฀ethnographers฀ approved฀a฀resolution฀that฀laid฀out฀immediate฀tasks฀for฀ethnographic฀ research.฀ Ethnographers,฀ according฀ to฀ the฀ document,฀ were฀ to฀ study฀ the฀following:

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(1)฀ the฀ process฀ of฀ ethnogenesis฀ and฀ territorial฀ distribution฀ of฀ ethnic/ national฀groups;฀(2)฀material฀production฀in฀its฀specific฀(ethnic)฀variants;฀ (3)฀ the฀ origin฀ of฀ the฀ family;฀ (4)฀ the฀ origin฀ of฀ classes;฀ (5)฀ the฀ origin฀ of฀ various฀forms฀of฀religion฀and฀art;฀(6)฀forms฀of฀deterioration฀of฀primitive฀ communism฀[and]฀feudal฀society฀in฀capitalist฀surroundings;฀(7)฀forms฀of฀ transition฀from฀precapitalist฀formations฀directly฀to฀socialism;฀and฀(8)฀the฀ construction฀of฀culture,฀national฀in฀its฀form฀and฀socialist฀in฀its฀content.฀ (Sovetskaya฀etnografiya,฀vol.฀3,฀1932,฀quoted฀in฀Slezkine฀1993:฀119)12

This฀emphasis฀on฀ethnic฀groups,฀combined฀with฀political฀pressure,฀ gave฀ birth฀ to฀ another฀ interesting฀ feature฀ of฀ Soviet฀ ethnography฀ in฀ the฀1930s฀(and฀later):฀ethnographers฀became฀agents฀of฀the฀state.฀Yuri฀ Slezkine฀ wrote:฀ “With฀ the฀ coming฀ to฀ power฀ of฀ the฀ Bolsheviks,฀ the฀ essence฀of฀national฀policy฀became฀a฀fight฀to฀converge฀ethnic฀borders฀ with฀administrative฀ones,฀which฀meant฀that฀most฀ethnographers฀had฀ to฀become฀administrators”฀(Slezkine฀2001:฀342).฀Ethnographers฀had฀to฀ study฀ethnic฀groups?฀Well,฀those฀ethnic฀groups฀first฀had฀to฀be฀constructed,฀ delineated,฀and฀made฀rigid.฀Another฀writer,฀David฀Anderson฀(2000b:฀ 135),฀supports฀this฀observation:฀“A฀hallmark฀of฀Soviet฀State฀ethnography฀ has฀been฀a฀concern฀with฀establishing฀those฀[ethnic]฀boundaries฀between฀ people฀which฀later฀became฀real฀administrative฀borders.”฀Later฀he฀says,฀ “The฀ fluid฀ boundaries฀ between฀ identity฀ groups฀ .฀.฀.฀ have฀ been฀ made฀ solid฀ and฀ impermeable฀ partly฀ through฀ official฀ ethnographic฀ action”฀ (2000b:฀141). In฀other฀words,฀in฀the฀late฀1930s฀Soviet฀politics,฀ideology,฀and฀then฀ science฀returned฀to฀the฀idea฀of฀ethnoses,฀and฀scientists฀began฀to฀study฀ ethnogenesis฀and฀to฀describe฀differences฀between฀ethnoses฀in฀“material”฀ and฀“spiritual”฀culture฀(see฀Anderson฀2000a:฀77ff.).฀They฀thereby฀contributed฀to฀constructing฀the฀ethnoses฀themselves฀and,฀in฀doing฀so,฀to฀laying฀ the฀basis฀for฀future฀ethnic฀conflict.฀As฀S.฀M.฀Shirokogorov฀wrote฀in฀the฀ 1930s,฀“The฀ethnographers’฀intention฀to฀show฀the฀inferiority฀of฀these฀ small฀nations฀and฀the฀need฀of฀‘protecting฀them’฀results฀from฀the฀general฀ attitudes฀of฀the฀great฀nations฀.฀.฀.฀while฀they฀seek฀impartial฀truth,฀they฀ are฀thus฀preparing฀the฀most฀perfected฀weapon฀for฀the฀ethnic฀struggle฀ in฀the฀future”฀(Shirokogorov฀1933:฀168). Beginning฀in฀the฀late฀1930s,฀Slavic-Russian฀ethnography฀became฀the฀ main฀field฀of฀studies฀for฀ethnogenetic฀research.฀The฀purpose฀of฀these฀ studies฀was฀to฀prove฀the฀self-driven฀formation฀of฀a฀resourceful฀and฀productive฀early฀Slavic฀culture฀and฀to฀demonstrate฀that฀Germanic฀cultures฀ had฀been฀underdeveloped,฀and฀their฀influence฀on฀neighboring฀cultures,฀ totally฀negative.฀This฀was฀an฀answer฀to฀the฀“ethnogenetic฀expansion”฀

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of฀ German฀ ethnologists:฀ Soviet฀ authors฀ of฀ the฀ 1940s฀ were฀ ready฀ to฀ discover฀“ancient฀Slavs”฀almost฀everywhere.฀Soviet฀authors฀set฀apart฀ for฀the฀Germanic฀peoples฀as฀insignificant฀a฀place฀as฀German฀authors฀of฀ the฀1920฀and฀1930s฀allotted฀to฀Slavic฀people฀(Shnirelman฀1993:฀62–63).฀ All฀this฀“academic฀research,”฀especially฀from฀the฀late฀1940s฀through฀the฀ early฀1950s,฀was฀aimed฀at฀intimidating฀the฀defeated฀Germany,฀to฀“prove”฀ the฀primitiveness฀of฀ancient฀German฀culture,฀and฀to฀honor฀Russia฀above฀ its฀Western฀neighbors฀(Shnirelman฀1993:฀63)—that฀is,฀it฀had฀all฀sorts฀of฀ goals,฀but฀they฀were฀not฀scientific.฀The฀roots฀of฀ethnogenetic฀research฀in฀ the฀Soviet฀Union฀were฀in฀“the฀struggle฀for฀the฀past”฀(Shnirelman฀1993:฀ 64),฀in฀the฀craving฀to฀establish฀a฀Slavic฀ethnogenetic฀myth.13 The฀journal฀Sovetskaia฀etnografiia฀for฀1946฀through฀1955฀demonstrates฀ the฀following฀quantitative฀distribution฀of฀papers:฀151฀papers฀on฀ethnogenesis,฀ethnic฀statistics,฀ethnic฀cartography,฀and฀research฀on฀ethnic฀ composition฀ and฀ ethnonyms;฀ 294฀ papers฀ on฀ various฀ aspects฀ of฀ subsistence฀and฀material฀culture;฀56฀papers฀on฀social฀structure฀and฀family฀ and฀ marriage฀ relations;฀ and฀ 182฀ papers฀ on฀ the฀ folklore฀ of฀ different฀ ethnic฀ groups฀ (Sovetskaya฀ etnografiia฀ 1956).฀ Most฀ papers฀ on฀ specific฀ ethnographic฀or฀linguistic฀issues฀contained฀in฀their฀titles฀references฀to฀ ethnicity฀or฀ethnogenesis. After฀ 1936–37,฀ when฀ unrestricted฀ terror฀ began฀ and฀ many฀ ethnographers฀ were฀ arrested,฀ “uncertainty฀ and฀ horror฀ were฀ so฀ strong฀ that฀ those฀ ethnographers฀ who฀ were฀ not฀ yet฀ in฀ prison฀ almost฀ lost฀ the฀ ability฀to฀speak”฀(Slezkine฀1993:฀122–23).฀Ethnography—in฀Matorin’s฀ and฀ Bykovskii’s฀ version—was฀ revived฀ only฀ after฀ World฀ War฀ II,฀ and฀ ethnographers฀returned฀to฀studying฀what฀was฀required฀by฀the฀resolution฀ of฀the฀1932฀meeting฀mentioned฀earlier. The฀Soviet฀Union฀thus฀became฀“the฀first฀State฀in฀history฀that฀legalized฀ ethno-territorial฀federalism,฀classified฀all฀citizens฀in฀accordance฀with฀ their฀ ‘biological฀ nationality,’฀ and฀ formally฀ subscribed฀ to฀ a฀ policy฀ of฀ governmental฀ preference฀ by฀ ethnicity”฀ (Slezkine฀ 2001:฀ 330;฀ see฀ also฀ Brubaker฀and฀Cooper฀2000).฀As฀another฀author฀put฀it,฀“reduction฀of฀ national฀to฀ethnic฀is฀a฀characteristic฀feature฀of฀Russian฀social฀sciences”฀ (Malakhov฀2002:฀12).

The฀Dam฀Breaks:฀Cultural฀Anthropologists฀in฀an฀ Ethnographic฀Field One฀of฀the฀inevitable฀consequences฀of฀the฀claustrophobic฀development฀ of฀the฀Soviet฀state฀was฀the฀isolation฀of฀scholars,฀including฀those฀who฀did฀ ethnographic฀and฀linguistic฀research฀in฀Siberia.฀I฀do฀not฀mean฀isolation฀

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from฀new฀theoretical฀achievements฀in฀Western฀science;฀even฀in฀Soviet฀ times฀there฀were฀scholars฀who฀watched฀carefully฀what฀was฀going฀on฀in฀ the฀West.฀The฀problem฀was฀that฀Russian฀ethnographers฀could฀work฀only฀ within฀the฀approved฀theoretical฀paradigm,฀and฀Russian฀and฀Western฀ scholars฀could฀not฀work฀together฀in฀the฀field.฀For฀many฀decades,฀the฀ Siberian฀“field”฀was,฀officially,฀completely฀sealed.14 In฀reality,฀a฀few฀individual฀Western฀ethnologists฀did฀sometimes฀find฀ a฀ way฀ to฀ work฀ in฀ Siberia,฀ even฀ before฀ the฀ dissolution฀ of฀ the฀ Soviet฀ Union.฀In฀1975,฀Marjorie฀Mandelstam฀Balzer฀managed฀to฀get฀to฀northern฀ Siberia.฀In฀the฀mid-1980s฀she฀began฀fieldwork฀in฀western฀Siberia฀among฀ the฀Khanty฀people฀and฀in฀Yakutia฀among฀the฀Sakha฀people.฀Caroline฀ Humphrey฀did฀fieldwork฀among฀the฀Buryats฀in฀southern฀Siberia฀in฀the฀ late฀1970s.฀Piers฀Vitebsky,฀too,฀began฀to฀do฀fieldwork฀in฀Yakutia฀fairly฀ early,฀in฀1986. But฀ fieldwork฀ by฀ Westerners฀ in฀ Siberia฀ during฀ Soviet฀ times฀ had฀ “official”—that฀is,฀approved฀and฀controlled—status.฀Western฀scholars,฀ who฀had฀to฀be฀formally฀invited฀by฀the฀Academy฀of฀Science,฀were฀carefully฀passed฀on฀from฀one฀academic฀institution฀to฀another.฀They฀were฀ told฀ where฀ they฀ could฀ go฀ and฀ where฀ they฀ were฀ not฀ allowed฀ to฀ go;฀ their฀contacts฀were฀strictly฀monitored฀and฀controlled฀by฀what฀was฀then฀ called฀“the฀competent฀organizations”฀(a฀Soviet฀euphemism฀for฀the฀KGB).฀ Besides,฀their฀stays฀in฀Siberia฀were฀usually฀brief. From฀the฀turn฀of฀the฀1980s฀through฀the฀1990s,฀the฀serene฀landscape฀ of฀ Soviet฀ Siberian฀ studies฀ was฀ shattered฀ by฀ the฀ unanticipated฀ arrival฀ of฀“other”฀foreign฀anthropologists,฀who฀came฀in฀a฀different฀manner.฀ They฀were฀young฀people,฀postgraduate฀students฀in฀anthropology,฀from฀ all฀ over฀ the฀ world,฀ magnetized฀ by฀ the฀ sudden฀ accessibility฀ of฀ a฀ vast฀ anthropological฀ “field.”฀ In฀ full฀ accord฀ with฀ the฀ traditions฀ of฀ British฀ and฀North฀American฀anthropology,฀they฀came฀for฀long฀periods฀of฀time,฀ usually฀for฀a฀year฀but฀often฀more.฀They฀moved฀about฀on฀their฀own,฀ uncontrolled฀by฀state฀officials;฀they฀made฀friends฀with฀local฀people,฀lived฀ in฀villages฀and฀camps,฀stayed฀with฀families,฀roamed฀with฀indigenous฀ reindeer฀ herders฀ on฀ the฀ tundra,฀ fished฀ and฀ hunted฀ with฀ indigenous฀ hunters฀and฀fishers฀in฀the฀taiga,฀and฀generally฀behaved฀like฀free฀people,฀ cheerfully฀breaking,฀in฀the฀eyes฀of฀the฀bewildered฀local฀administrators,฀ all฀the฀unwritten฀rules฀of฀the฀Soviet฀era. It฀ may฀ not฀ be฀ an฀ exaggeration฀ to฀ say฀ that฀ in฀ the฀ late฀ 1980s฀ there฀ appeared฀in฀the฀West,฀and฀especially฀in฀North฀America,฀a฀real฀craze฀for฀ Siberia.฀From฀that฀time฀into฀the฀mid-1990s,฀more฀than฀a฀dozen฀young฀ anthropologists฀ who฀ had฀ graduated฀ from฀ universities฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ States,฀Canada,฀Great฀Britain,฀Germany,฀Norway,฀and฀France฀managed฀

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to฀ complete฀ serious฀ fieldwork฀ in฀ Taimyr฀ and฀ Yakutia,฀ in฀ Chukotka฀ and฀Sakhalin,฀in฀Kamchatka฀and฀Yamal,฀to฀collect฀data฀for฀their฀PhD฀ projects.15฀By฀the฀end฀of฀the฀1990s,฀this฀work฀had฀begun฀to฀produce฀ results:฀publications฀appeared—first฀articles,฀then฀books.16฀The฀authors฀ found฀jobs฀in฀anthropology฀departments฀at฀universities฀in฀the฀United฀ States,฀Canada,฀the฀United฀Kingdom,฀Finland,฀France,฀and฀Germany.฀ They฀became฀regular฀participants฀in฀academic฀conferences฀on฀Siberian฀ anthropology฀ both฀ in฀ Russia฀ and฀ abroad.฀ Russian฀ scholars฀ who฀ did฀ research฀on฀the฀cultures฀and฀languages฀of฀Siberia฀began฀to฀discern฀a฀ metamorphosis฀of฀their฀academic฀landscape. This฀metamorphosis฀can฀be฀perceived฀in฀several฀respects.฀First,฀the฀ (invisible)฀international฀academic฀community฀of฀Siberian฀anthropologists฀ has฀grown฀considerably฀in฀numbers฀and฀has฀become฀much฀younger.฀ Approximately฀three฀dozen฀Russian฀anthropologists฀and฀linguists฀who฀ did฀research฀in฀and฀on฀Siberia฀have฀been฀reinforced฀by฀a฀strong฀and฀ active฀cohort฀of฀foreign฀scholars,฀comparable฀in฀numbers,฀whose฀advent฀ has฀markedly฀transformed฀the฀community.฀Alongside฀this฀“mechanical฀ population฀increase,”฀the฀number฀of฀Russian฀anthropologists฀has฀decreased฀ steadily,฀ due฀ to฀ natural฀ causes,฀ to฀ the฀ departure฀ of฀ Russian฀ scholars฀from฀the฀underpaid฀discipline฀(and฀in฀many฀cases,฀from฀the฀ country),฀and฀to฀young฀Russian฀students’฀apparent฀unwillingness฀to฀enter฀ a฀discipline฀that,฀in฀the฀early฀1990s,฀seemed฀to฀have฀no฀career฀prospects฀ at฀all.฀Against฀the฀background฀of฀decreasing฀numbers฀of฀research฀staff฀in฀ the฀Siberian฀departments฀of฀various฀institutes฀of฀ethnology฀and฀in฀the฀ linguistics฀departments฀of฀the฀Academy฀of฀Science,฀the฀Universities฀of฀ St.฀Petersburg,฀Moscow,฀Tomsk,฀and฀Novosibirsk,฀and฀other฀traditional฀ research฀centers,฀the฀advent฀of฀ten฀to฀fifteen฀young,฀energetic฀scholars฀ from฀ the฀ West฀ was฀ a฀ major฀ transformation.17฀ Interestingly,฀ among฀ the฀ Western฀ Siberianists฀ there฀ are฀ no฀ “generations”:฀ all฀ of฀ them฀ are฀ approximately฀the฀same฀age.฀This฀creates฀special฀relations฀both฀within฀ the฀group฀and฀between฀the฀group฀and฀its฀Russian฀colleagues. The฀second฀important฀change฀in฀the฀Siberian฀academic฀landscape฀is฀ the฀change฀in฀the฀object฀of฀anthropological฀research.฀Russian฀(Soviet)฀ ethnological฀research,฀as฀I฀mentioned,฀was฀always฀connected฀with฀the฀ past,฀with฀tradition,฀with฀studies฀of฀cultures,฀languages,฀and฀societies฀that฀ were฀“on฀the฀verge฀of฀extinction”฀and฀thus฀had฀urgently฀to฀be฀recorded฀ before฀it฀was฀too฀late.฀This฀view฀was฀not,฀of฀course,฀a฀Russian฀invention:฀ as฀Susan฀Gal฀(1989)฀noted,฀claims฀about฀the฀inevitable฀disappearance฀of฀ cultures,฀languages,฀and฀dialects,฀soon฀after฀they฀were฀discovered,฀were฀ constant฀and฀central฀rhetorical฀figures฀of฀European฀ethnography฀of฀the฀ twentieth฀century.฀Scholars฀often฀were฀in฀search฀of฀remote฀rural฀areas,฀

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of฀elderly฀people;฀they฀were฀looking฀for฀archaic,฀unchanged,฀and฀hence฀ “genuine,”฀authentic฀elements฀of฀culture.฀They฀interpreted฀changes฀as฀ distortions,฀as฀losses฀of฀this฀“genuineness.”฀Gal฀called฀this฀approach฀ “pastoral”:฀the฀past฀is฀the฀model,฀the฀present฀is฀regarded฀as฀the฀“spoiled฀ past.”฀Although฀many฀scholars฀explicitly฀rejected฀this฀approach,฀it฀still฀ influenced฀their฀results฀(Gal฀1989:฀315–16).18 The฀opposite฀approach฀to฀the฀“ethnographic฀field”—namely,฀studies฀ of฀the฀contemporary฀social,฀cultural,฀and฀linguistic฀features฀of฀modern฀ communities—was,฀ as฀ I฀ mentioned,฀ totally฀ washed฀ away฀ in฀ the฀ late฀ 1920s฀by฀studies฀of฀“ethnogenesis”฀and฀“material฀culture.”฀The฀new฀ cohort฀of฀young฀Western฀anthropologists฀brought฀back฀this฀approach:฀ their฀work฀strongly฀emphasizes฀the฀present฀as฀something฀of฀value฀in฀ itself.฀They฀study฀contemporary฀reindeer฀herding,฀contemporary฀ethnic฀ identities฀and฀conflicts,฀contemporary฀power฀and฀gender฀relations.฀This,฀as฀ well฀as฀the฀fact฀that฀international฀foundations฀emphasize฀their฀support฀ for฀research฀into฀contemporary฀topics,฀has฀caused฀Russian฀scholars฀to฀ adjust฀their฀research฀along฀the฀new—or฀rather,฀forgotten—lines. Another฀important฀transformation฀is฀what฀one฀might฀call฀changes฀in฀ “property฀relations”฀among฀Soviet฀Siberian฀anthropologists฀in฀dividing฀ their฀domains฀of฀study.฀For฀decades,฀these฀relations฀rested฀undisturbed:฀ everybody฀knew฀who฀studied฀what,฀and฀who฀had฀the฀“right”฀to฀study฀ what.฀In฀a฀way,฀Siberia฀was฀divided฀into฀“spheres฀of฀influence”฀among฀ scholars฀from฀Moscow,฀Leningrad,฀Novosibirsk,฀Tomsk,฀and฀some฀other฀ cities;฀it฀was฀rare฀that฀two฀scholars,฀whether฀linguists฀or฀ethnographers,฀ did฀research฀in฀the฀same฀area฀or฀on฀the฀same฀language.฀This฀division฀ of฀ Siberia฀ into฀ “hunting฀ sites”—where฀ each฀ scholar฀ had฀ his฀ or฀ her฀ “legitimate”฀area,฀people,฀or฀language,฀and฀trespassing฀was฀definitely฀ unwelcome—can฀be฀explained฀partly฀by฀the฀small฀number฀of฀scholars:฀ the฀field฀was฀too฀vast฀and฀human฀life฀too฀short฀to฀take฀more฀than฀one฀ indigenous฀ group฀ or฀ language฀ for฀ serious฀ research.฀ Partly,฀ however,฀ this฀situation฀was฀maintained฀consciously,฀and฀not฀always฀for฀purely฀ academic฀considerations. The฀arrival฀of฀Western฀anthropologists฀changed฀the฀situation฀considerably.฀In฀the฀1990s฀almost฀every฀Russian฀ethnologist฀discovered฀that฀he฀ or฀she฀had฀acquired฀a฀colleague฀(or฀a฀rival,฀depending฀on฀one’s฀point฀ of฀view)฀who฀worked฀in฀the฀same฀area,฀in฀the฀same฀villages,฀and฀often฀ at฀the฀same฀time.฀The฀“natural฀monopoly”฀of฀Russian฀ethnologists฀over฀ “their”฀people,฀area,฀or฀language฀came฀to฀an฀end. The฀theoretical฀paradigm฀of฀Siberian฀research฀also฀changed.฀Soviet฀ ethnologists฀worked,฀willingly฀or฀not,฀within฀pseudo-Marxist฀theory,฀ developed฀ and฀ approved฀ by฀ several฀ “recognized”฀ scholars—and฀ first฀

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of฀all฀within฀the฀“theory฀of฀ethnos.”฀Western฀scholars฀brought฀in฀new฀ theoretical฀approaches.฀It฀is฀not฀that฀those฀ideas฀were฀entirely฀new฀to฀ Soviet฀scholars,฀but฀the฀mere฀fact฀that฀it฀now฀became฀possible฀to฀choose฀ between฀approaches,฀between฀different฀conceptual฀and฀terminological฀ systems,฀was฀a฀breath฀of฀fresh฀air฀for฀Russian฀scholarship. I฀do฀not฀mean฀to฀say฀that฀all฀“foreign”฀theories฀and฀methodologies฀ were฀necessarily฀better,฀or฀that฀foreign฀scholars฀were฀free฀from฀theoretical฀ stereotypes฀ or฀ fashions,฀ with฀ their฀ inevitable฀ references฀ to฀ Mikhail฀ Bakhtin฀and฀Lev฀Iakubinskii,฀Michel฀Foucault฀and฀Fredrik฀Barth,฀Ernest฀ Gellner฀ and฀ Benedict฀ Anderson฀ (references฀ that฀ often฀ resemble฀ the฀ unavoidable฀references฀to฀Marx,฀Engels,฀and฀Lenin฀on฀the฀first฀pages฀ of฀ Soviet฀ publications).฀ But฀ the฀ mere฀ fact฀ that฀ these฀ were฀ different฀ theories฀and฀that฀there฀was฀now฀a฀possibility฀of฀choice฀affected฀Russian฀ ethnography. Finally,฀ the฀ rise฀ of฀ the฀ system฀ of฀ research฀ grants,฀ including฀ international฀ones,฀was฀also฀a฀new฀development.฀The฀possibility฀of฀approaching฀international฀funding฀agencies฀directly฀and฀of฀starting฀joint฀research฀ projects฀with฀colleagues฀from฀other฀countries฀eroded฀the฀state’s฀monopoly฀on฀international฀collaboration฀and฀led฀to฀the฀active฀development฀ of฀ ethnological,฀ archaeological,฀ and฀ linguistic฀ research฀ in฀ Siberia— at฀ Siberian฀ universities฀ and฀ research฀ institutions.฀ Modern฀ Siberian฀ ethnology฀in฀Russia฀is฀much฀more฀decentralized฀than฀it฀used฀to฀be. Although฀the฀fashion฀for฀doing฀fieldwork฀in฀Siberia฀has฀ebbed฀somewhat฀by฀now,฀it฀is฀clear฀that฀this฀outburst฀of฀interest฀was฀not฀accidental฀ or฀temporary;฀the฀changes฀in฀the฀Siberianist฀landscape฀are฀now฀established฀facts.฀Siberian฀anthropological฀studies฀are—theoretically,฀methodologically,฀and฀practically—much฀more฀international฀than฀they฀were฀ during฀the฀Soviet฀era.฀They฀are,฀in฀a฀sense,฀starting฀over฀from฀the฀point฀ in฀the฀early฀1920s฀when฀cultural฀anthropology,฀brought฀to฀the฀country฀ by฀ Bogoraz,฀ Sternberg,฀ Jochelson,฀ and฀ others,฀ began฀ to฀ develop฀ as฀ a฀ natural฀part฀of฀international฀science,฀a฀development฀that฀was฀violently฀ terminated฀by฀the฀Soviet฀power.

What’s฀New?฀Current฀Changes฀in฀Research฀Paradigms As฀a฀result฀of฀the฀developments฀I฀have฀outlined,฀today’s฀Siberian฀anthropological฀research฀in฀Russia฀is฀undergoing฀acute฀disciplinary฀transformations.฀I฀will฀limit฀myself฀to฀two฀brief฀examples฀of฀these฀transformations฀ within฀ two฀ aspects฀ of฀ research:฀ changes฀ in฀ the฀ object฀ of฀ study฀ and฀ changes฀in฀attitudes฀toward฀ethical฀aspects฀of฀anthropological฀research฀ in฀Siberia฀(see฀Vakhtin฀and฀Sirina฀2003฀for฀details).

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The฀field฀methodology฀accepted฀in฀Russian฀ethnological฀research,฀as฀ well฀as฀the฀programs฀of฀such฀research,฀were฀originally฀designed฀for฀the฀ study฀of฀specific฀territories฀(Sirina฀2002).฀With฀the฀rise฀of฀the฀“theory฀ of฀ethnos,”฀these฀methods฀were฀applied฀to฀individual฀“ethnic฀groups”฀ (“peoples”),฀which฀caused฀numerous฀problems,฀especially฀in฀parts฀of฀ Siberia฀known฀as฀“zones฀of฀ethnic฀contact”฀(Vasiliev฀1985).฀In฀those฀ zones,฀ different฀ “ethnoses”฀ had฀ lived฀ together฀ and฀ influenced฀ one฀ another฀ for฀ centuries,฀ and฀ it฀ was฀ often฀ impossible฀ to฀ tell฀ where฀ the฀ ethnic฀boundaries฀lay,฀if฀they฀existed฀at฀all.฀Nor฀was฀this฀approach฀useful฀ for฀ large฀ territories฀ encompassing฀ several฀ distant฀ groups,฀ such฀ as฀ Evens,฀Evenki,฀and฀Nenets. Because฀most฀of฀Siberia฀is฀in฀fact฀one฀big฀“zone฀of฀ethnic฀contact,”฀ and฀ because฀ indigenous฀ demography฀ has฀ changed฀ considerably฀ in฀ the฀last฀fifty฀years,฀influenced฀by฀the฀high฀mobility฀of฀the฀population,฀ research฀that฀takes฀“one฀ethnos”฀as฀its฀object฀drives฀itself฀into฀a฀dead฀ end:฀it฀is฀often฀impossible฀to฀define฀the฀object.฀This฀tendency฀is฀now฀ slowly฀being฀overcome,฀not฀without฀the฀positive฀influence฀of฀Western฀ anthropologists฀who฀employ฀in฀their฀research฀a฀territorial฀approach.฀ (Again,฀I฀do฀not฀mean฀to฀say฀that฀Western฀approaches฀are฀necessarily฀ better:฀ in฀ many฀ cases฀ it฀ is฀ only฀ collaborative฀ research฀ that฀ can฀ yield฀ convincing฀results.) Another฀interesting฀trait฀of฀current฀Siberian฀ethnology฀is฀a฀shift฀from฀ studies฀ of฀ indigenous฀ populations฀ to฀ studies฀ of฀ all฀ populations.฀ The฀ ethnic฀picture฀of฀modern฀Siberia฀is฀complicated฀and฀cannot฀be฀reduced฀ to฀ simple฀ dichotomies฀ such฀ as฀ “indigenous฀ people฀ vs.฀ newcomers,”฀ “oppressed฀vs.฀oppressors,”฀or฀“traditional฀vs.฀innovative.”฀Indigenous฀ populations฀ are฀ today฀ highly฀ structured฀ and฀ stratified฀ and฀ include฀ those฀who฀prefer฀traditional฀subsistence,฀those฀who฀prefer฀to฀live฀in฀ villages,฀and฀ethnic฀elites฀who฀occupy฀leading฀positions฀in฀social฀and฀ power฀ structures.฀ The฀ “newcomers”฀ (Russians)฀ are฀ also฀ diversified.฀ They฀ include฀ “old฀ settlers”฀ who฀ have฀ lived฀ in฀ the฀ area฀ for฀ the฀ last฀ three฀ hundred฀ years,฀ people฀ born฀ in฀ the฀ area฀ to฀ immigrant฀ parents,฀ and฀“real”฀newcomers,฀temporary฀and฀even฀part-time฀(“shift”)฀workers.฀ The฀social,฀educational,฀and฀economic฀characteristics฀of฀all฀these฀groups฀ are฀diversified.฀For฀some฀areas,฀at฀least฀three฀kinds฀of฀groups฀are฀defined:฀ local฀administration,฀local฀industry,฀and฀the฀indigenous฀population;฀all฀ three฀are฀now฀becoming฀legitimate฀objects฀of฀anthropological฀research฀ (see฀Novikova฀2002). Ethical฀ codes฀ for฀ anthropological฀ research฀ are฀ adopted฀ by฀ both฀ national฀and฀international฀associations฀of฀anthropologists฀and฀by฀indigenous฀ communities.฀ An฀ interesting฀ discussion฀ is฀ presently฀ going฀ on฀

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in฀Russia฀about฀whether฀such฀a฀code฀can—and฀should—be฀adopted.฀ Unwritten฀rules฀of฀conduct฀“in฀the฀field”฀have,฀of฀course,฀always฀existed฀ in฀Russia,฀but฀to฀make฀them฀a฀written฀(paralegal)฀document,฀one฀needs฀ two฀legitimate฀parties฀to฀“sign”฀it.฀The฀recently฀established฀Association฀of฀ Russian฀Anthropologists฀and฀Ethnologists฀could฀be฀one฀such฀party;฀the฀ other฀side฀is฀evidently฀“the฀community.”฀But฀indigenous฀communities฀ in฀Siberia฀are฀very฀misleading฀units.฀On฀one฀hand,฀many฀of฀them฀were฀ created฀artificially฀during฀the฀infamous฀era฀of฀forceful฀relocations฀of฀ indigenous฀ people฀ in฀ the฀ 1950s฀ and฀ 1960s฀ (see฀ Vakhtin฀ 1992).฀ On฀ the฀other฀hand,฀many฀of฀them฀exist฀only฀on฀paper฀and฀are฀reduced฀to฀ native฀elites;฀there฀are฀doubts฀whether฀these฀units฀can฀be฀partners฀in฀a฀ “contract”฀of฀this฀kind. Importantly,฀this฀whole฀discussion฀was฀initiated,฀although฀indirectly,฀ by฀Western฀anthropologists,฀who฀obviously฀feel฀uncomfortable฀without฀ such฀a฀code.฀They฀find฀themselves฀in฀an฀even฀more฀complicated฀situation฀ than฀their฀Russian฀colleagues,฀because,฀not฀being฀Russian฀citizens,฀they฀ cannot฀interfere฀in฀local฀politics฀or฀take฀part฀in฀local฀economic,฀social,฀ or฀ethnic฀conflicts.฀Both฀Russian฀and฀Western฀anthropologists฀see฀their฀ mission฀at฀that฀of฀becoming฀“the฀voice฀of฀the฀voiceless”:฀to฀make฀the฀ problems฀ of฀ the฀ Natives฀ known฀ and฀ heard,฀ to฀ help฀ them฀ formulate฀ their฀needs฀in฀the฀language฀of฀the฀law,฀to฀help฀them฀in฀their฀struggle฀ for฀rights฀(Argunova฀2002;฀Novikova฀2002).฀Joint฀cultural,฀language,฀ and฀educational฀projects฀with฀and฀for฀indigenous฀people฀(Kasten฀2002a;฀ Koester฀2002)฀are฀one฀possible฀solution,฀yet฀the฀ethics฀of฀anthropological฀ research฀in฀Siberia฀remains฀a฀difficult฀issue฀for฀both฀Russian฀and฀nonRussian฀researchers.

The฀Current฀Situation:฀Cooperation฀or฀Rivalry? Western฀anthropologists,฀just฀like฀their฀Russian฀colleagues,฀are฀working฀ today฀ in฀ a฀ “field”฀ that฀ was,฀ to฀ a฀ large฀ extent,฀ constructed฀ by฀ Soviet฀ national฀ (and฀ language)฀ policies฀ and฀ by฀ Soviet฀ ethnographic฀ (and฀ linguistic)฀research.฀But฀Western฀anthropologists฀have฀been฀brought฀up฀ in฀an฀entirely฀different฀theoretical฀and฀methodological฀tradition฀from฀ that฀of฀their฀Russian฀colleagues฀of฀the฀older฀generation.฀Coming฀to฀the฀ “Siberian฀field,”฀they฀are฀naturally฀tempted฀to฀deconstruct฀it,฀to฀peel฀off฀ stereotypes฀and฀the฀“discursive฀crust”฀and฀identify฀underlying฀meanings฀ and฀facts.฀But฀on฀this฀road,฀a฀trap฀awaits฀them.฀By฀deconstructing฀the฀ object฀of฀study,฀they฀simultaneously฀and฀automatically฀repudiate฀the฀ scholarly฀tradition฀that฀constructed฀the฀object.฀Consciously฀or฀not,฀they฀ find฀themselves฀in฀a฀position฀of฀criticism฀of฀Soviet฀(Russian)฀ethnology— which,฀naturally,฀Russian฀ethnologists฀do฀not฀like.

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I฀ will฀ finish฀ with฀ a฀ story฀ about฀ a฀ clash฀ between฀ two฀ scholars:฀ the฀ Canadian฀anthropologist฀David฀Anderson,฀who฀now฀works฀in฀Scotland,฀ and฀the฀Russian฀linguist฀Evgenii฀Helimskii,฀who฀now฀works฀in฀Germany.฀ Both฀are,฀in฀their฀respective฀fields,฀professionals฀of฀the฀highest฀rank. In฀June฀2000฀a฀conference฀took฀place฀in฀Vienna,฀where,฀unexpectedly,฀Helimskii฀presented฀a฀sharply฀critical฀review฀of฀Anderson’s฀book฀ Identity฀and฀Ecology฀in฀Arctic฀Siberia฀(2000a).19฀Two฀of฀Anderson’s฀“sins,”฀ in฀Helimskii’s฀opinion,฀were฀underrating฀the฀role,฀achievements,฀and฀ value฀of฀Soviet฀scholarship฀and฀overrating฀the฀scale฀of฀ethnic฀conflicts฀ in฀the฀region.฀Helimskii฀is฀clearly฀a฀“primordialist”:฀for฀him,฀ethnicity฀ is฀ peacefully฀ and฀ simply฀ inherited,฀ passed฀ from฀ parents฀ to฀ children฀ unchanged฀and฀unchangeable.฀He฀was฀enraged฀at฀the฀way฀Anderson฀ treated฀the฀issue,฀accusing฀the฀latter฀of฀no฀less฀than฀inflating,฀through฀ his฀research,฀ethnic฀conflict฀in฀Taimyr.฀Anderson,฀on฀the฀contrary,฀is฀ clearly฀ a฀ “constructivist”:฀ for฀ him,฀ ethnicity,฀ which฀ previously฀ had฀ been฀insignificant฀in฀the฀area,฀was฀“constructed”฀in฀the฀mid-twentieth฀ century,฀ not฀ without฀ the฀ help฀ of฀ Soviet฀ ethnographers,฀ and฀ now฀ is฀ claimed฀by฀local฀elites฀and฀used฀as฀an฀instrument฀in฀political,฀social,฀and฀ economic฀life฀in฀the฀area.฀The฀discussion฀was฀energetic฀and฀caused฀some฀ long-lasting฀ripples฀on฀the฀quiet฀surface฀of฀the฀tiny฀Siberianist฀pond. This฀polemic฀is฀a฀good฀example฀of฀the฀mutual฀“ideological”฀misunderstanding฀that฀is,฀unfortunately,฀widespread฀and฀impedes฀joint฀productive฀ work฀by฀Russian฀and฀Western฀Siberianists.฀The฀“ideological฀struggle”฀in฀ the฀discipline฀is฀further฀aggravated฀by฀the฀fact฀that฀Soviet฀ethnography,฀ throughout฀ its฀ history,฀ was฀ strongly฀ politicized฀ and฀ “ideologized”:฀ ethnographers฀ received฀ political฀ assignments฀ from฀ the฀ state.฀ When฀ the฀ideological฀constituent฀dissolved฀in฀the฀late฀1980s,฀ethnographers฀ found฀themselves฀in฀a฀methodological฀vacuum.฀At฀first,฀new฀Western฀ theories฀began฀to฀pour฀in฀and฀fill฀in฀the฀gap,฀but฀in฀later฀years,฀neonationalist฀demands฀began฀to฀arise,฀and฀ethnography,฀archaeology,฀and฀ linguistics฀were฀once฀again฀recruited฀to฀help฀support฀various฀political฀ and฀ territorial฀ claims,฀ “prove”฀ the฀ antiquity฀ of฀ an฀ ethnic฀ group,฀ or฀ “prove”฀the฀right฀of฀this฀or฀that฀group฀to฀self-government,฀to฀a฀piece฀ of฀land,฀or฀to฀a฀history฀(compare฀Shnirelman฀2000). Western฀anthropologists฀are฀strangers฀to฀this฀game฀and฀are฀usually— and฀understandably—unwilling฀to฀play฀it.฀The฀local฀elites,฀because฀they฀ cannot฀ use฀ them,฀ try฀ to฀ dislodge฀ them฀ from฀ the฀ scene,฀ often฀ using฀ straightforward฀methods.฀They฀accuse฀Western฀anthropologists฀of฀working฀for฀foreign฀intelligence฀agencies,฀of฀being฀“agents฀of฀influence”฀for฀ the฀international฀oil฀industry,฀and฀even฀of฀attempting฀to฀cut฀off฀a฀piece฀ of฀Siberia฀and฀proclaim฀it฀a฀sovereign฀country.฀Quite฀a฀few฀publications฀

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making฀ such฀ claims฀ have฀ appeared฀ in฀ the฀ local฀ press;฀ usually฀ they฀ end฀ with฀ demands฀ “to฀ put฀ an฀ end฀ to”฀ the฀ insurgent฀ activities฀ of฀ a฀ certain฀ anthropologist.฀ Here฀ is฀ just฀ one฀ example,฀ a฀ passage฀ from฀ an฀ email฀message฀sent฀to฀me฀by฀a฀colleague,฀NN,฀a฀social฀anthropologist฀ with฀ two฀ years฀ of฀ fieldwork฀ in฀ Chukotka,฀ which฀ I฀ received฀ in฀ April฀ 2000฀ (translated฀ from฀ the฀ Russian):฀ “Well,฀ Nick,฀ this฀ has฀ happened:฀ I฀have฀been฀refused฀permission฀to฀conduct฀fieldwork฀in฀Chukotka฀.฀.฀.฀ the฀Department฀of฀Migration฀and฀Nationalities฀sent฀my฀papers฀to฀the฀ Department฀ of฀ Agriculture฀ for฀ endorsement.฀ They฀ have฀ a฀ new฀ boss฀ there,฀ and฀ he฀ disapproved.”฀ Disciplinary฀ transformations฀ are฀ taking฀ place—and฀ the฀ reactions฀ of฀ the฀ “systems฀ of฀ power”฀ are฀ not฀ always฀ favorable. All฀things฀considered,฀one฀can฀still฀say฀that฀Russian฀cultural฀anthropology฀is฀going฀through฀an฀international฀phase฀in฀its฀development,฀or฀ at฀least฀it฀is฀entering฀such฀a฀phase.฀Unlike฀the฀1990s,฀the฀first฀years฀of฀ the฀new฀millennium฀seem฀to฀have฀brought฀Russia฀a฀growing฀economy฀ and฀ economic฀ and฀ social฀ stability;฀ unlike฀ in฀ the฀ 1990s,฀ the฀ social฀ sciences฀ and฀ humanities฀ have฀ again฀ begun฀ to฀ receive฀ state฀ financial฀ support,฀however฀modest฀and฀insufficient.฀Russian฀scholars฀are฀feeling฀ much฀more฀confident฀about฀getting฀international฀research฀grants฀and฀ scholarships,฀which฀put฀them฀financially฀on฀a฀more฀equal฀basis฀with฀ their฀Western฀colleagues.฀Scholarly฀paradigms,฀theoretical฀frameworks,฀ and฀ methodological฀ approaches฀ are฀ also฀ becoming฀ more฀ level.฀ Both฀ epistemological฀and฀institutional฀relations฀between฀Russian฀and฀Western฀ scholars฀are฀thus฀growing฀more฀balanced฀and฀apparently฀have฀at฀present฀ a฀greater฀potential฀for฀cross-fertilization. For฀me,฀what฀I฀have฀described฀in฀this฀chapter฀is฀more฀than฀a฀dispassionate฀history฀of฀science,฀or฀“transformations฀in฀Siberian฀anthropology.”฀It฀is฀ a฀history฀of฀a฀branch฀of฀science฀in฀which฀I฀have฀worked฀for฀the฀last฀thirty฀ years,฀so฀my฀attitudes฀are฀far฀from฀disinterested.฀Like฀Peter฀Schweitzer฀ (2001:฀17),฀I฀feel฀that฀my฀view฀of฀the฀past฀is฀difficult฀to฀separate฀from฀ my฀interests฀in฀the฀present฀and฀future฀of฀Siberian฀research.฀Schweitzer’s฀ central฀analytical฀concept฀was฀the฀notion฀of฀“national”฀versus฀“trans-฀or฀ international”฀scholarship;฀he฀suggested฀a฀model฀according฀to฀which฀ periods฀of฀claustrophobia฀in฀the฀development฀of฀Siberian฀studies฀(that฀ is,฀times฀of฀“national”฀academic฀approaches)฀alternate฀with฀periods฀of฀ openness฀(“transnational”).฀Because฀I฀am฀an฀“insider,”฀I฀hope,฀rather฀ egotistically,฀that฀Schweitzer’s฀model,฀although฀undoubtedly฀true฀for฀ the฀past,฀will฀prove฀wrong฀for฀the฀future—that฀in฀the฀future,฀Siberian฀ anthropology฀will฀not฀again฀become฀a฀purely฀Russian฀research฀field,฀ that฀other฀national฀and฀transnational฀research฀traditions฀will฀establish฀

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themselves฀permanently฀in฀the฀realm฀of฀Siberian฀anthropology.฀I฀hope,฀ in฀other฀words,฀that฀the฀claustrophobic฀years฀are฀in฀the฀past,฀whatever฀ fluctuations฀the฀“systems฀of฀power”฀might฀undergo—although฀of฀course฀ one฀never฀knows.

Notes 1.฀ Much฀of฀this฀chapter,฀especially฀its฀second฀part,฀is฀but฀a฀brief฀overview฀of฀ the฀main฀tendencies฀in฀Soviet฀ethnology฀in฀general,฀of฀which฀Siberian฀anthropology฀was฀merely฀a฀part.฀Because฀of฀my฀personal฀interests฀and฀experience,฀I฀ am฀more฀familiar฀with฀linguistic฀research฀and,฀consequently,฀with฀the฀history฀ of฀language฀research฀and฀language฀policy฀in฀Siberia. 2.฀ The฀journal฀Etnograficheskoe฀obozrenie฀was฀published฀until฀1926,฀when฀its฀ name฀was฀changed,฀first฀to฀Etnografia฀(Ethnography),฀from฀1926฀to฀1929,฀and฀ then฀to฀Sovetskaya฀etnografia฀(Soviet฀ethnography),฀from฀1930฀to฀1991.฀After฀the฀ collapse฀of฀the฀Soviet฀Union฀in฀1991,฀it฀was฀changed฀back฀to฀Ethograficheskoe฀ obozrenie. 3.฀ See฀the฀detailed฀bibliography฀of฀publications฀connected฀with฀the฀expedition฀compiled฀by฀Igor฀Krupnik฀(2001). 4.฀ See,฀ for฀ example,฀ the฀ obituary฀ of฀ S.฀ M.฀ Shirokogorov฀ published฀ by฀ W.฀Muelman฀(Etnograficheskoe฀obozrenie฀2002,฀no.฀1),฀in฀which฀Shirokogorov’s฀ influence฀ on฀ European฀ theoretical฀ thought฀ is฀ discussed.฀ See฀ also฀ Schweitzer฀ 2001. 5.฀ Sternberg฀n.d.฀As฀far฀as฀I฀know,฀this฀address฀has฀never฀been฀published.฀ Sternberg฀ and฀ Bogoraz฀ established฀ the฀ Geographic฀ Institute฀ in฀ 1916฀ as฀ an฀ ethnological฀research฀institution฀within฀St.฀Petersburg฀University.฀In฀the฀early฀ 1920s฀it฀became฀the฀nucleus฀of฀the฀famous฀Institute฀of฀the฀Northern฀Peoples,฀ later฀transformed฀into฀the฀Northern฀Department฀of฀the฀Hertzen฀Pedagogical฀ Institute,฀the฀main฀educational฀institution฀for฀indigenous฀Northern฀minorities. 6.฀ From฀ the฀ modern฀ standpoint,฀ despite฀ the฀ notoriety฀ of฀ Marr’s฀ speculations,฀there฀was฀in฀them฀a฀grain฀of฀reason.฀If฀one฀sets฀aside฀his฀“stadial฀theory”฀ (i.e.,฀ that฀ all฀ languages฀ pass฀ through฀ the฀ same฀ stages฀ of฀ development,฀ from฀ primitive฀to฀developed,฀and฀the฀stages฀coincide฀with฀the฀social฀and฀economic฀ stages฀ of฀ societies),฀ his฀ ill-famed฀ “four-element”฀ theory,฀ and฀ his฀ thesis฀ that฀ each฀social฀class฀spoke฀a฀different฀language฀(see฀Brandist฀2002b),฀there฀remain฀ Marr’s฀ powerful฀ thoughts฀ about฀ the฀ “interbreeding”฀ of฀ languages,฀ cultures,฀ and฀peoples,฀his฀ideas฀about฀their฀mutual฀influence,฀and฀his฀point฀about฀the฀

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unified฀ principles฀ determining฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ languages฀ and฀ cultures.฀ According฀ to฀ Marr,฀ all฀ modern฀ languages฀ and฀ peoples฀ were฀ mixed;฀ besides,฀ language,฀culture,฀race,฀and฀religion฀were฀historical฀categories,฀which฀meant฀ that฀they฀changed฀over฀time฀(Marr฀1915:฀287,฀quoted฀in฀Shnirelman฀1993:฀53).฀ We฀find฀here฀a฀completely฀different฀approach฀to฀ethnicity฀(“race,”฀in฀Marr’s฀ terms)฀as฀a฀resilient฀category,฀an฀approach฀that฀looks฀more฀like฀modern฀ones฀ than฀like฀the฀“primordial”฀theories฀of฀ethnicity฀that฀later฀became฀dominant฀ in฀Soviet฀ethnography. ฀ 7.฀ Bulletin฀of฀Official฀Orders฀and฀Communications฀of฀the฀Ministry฀of฀Education,฀ 13฀January฀1923฀(no.฀7):฀10. ฀ 8.฀ See฀ the฀ speech฀ given฀ by฀ N.฀ M.฀ Pokrovskii฀ before฀ the฀ First฀ All-Russian฀ Congress฀ of฀ Regional฀ Councils฀ (26฀ January฀ 1923)฀ on฀ the฀ enlightenment฀ of฀ nationalities,฀in฀Bulletin฀of฀Official฀Orders฀and฀Communications฀of฀the฀Ministry฀of฀ Education,฀13฀January฀1923฀(no.฀10):฀12.฀See฀also฀the฀presentation฀by฀Rosen฀in฀ the฀same฀source฀(p.฀15). ฀ 9.฀ For฀ those฀ unacquainted฀ with฀ Stalinist฀ political฀ rhetoric,฀ “imperial฀ chauvinism”฀ (velikoderzhavnyi฀ shovinizm)฀ and฀ “local฀ nationalism”฀ (mestnyi฀ natsionalizm)฀were฀two฀accusations฀the฀Bolsheviks฀used฀alternatively฀to฀charge฀ and฀purge฀those฀who฀carried฀on฀their฀shoulders฀all฀cultural฀work.฀Too฀much฀ attention฀ to฀ the฀ general฀ (whether฀ in฀ language,฀ culture,฀ habits,฀ or฀ school฀ curricula)฀ put฀ the฀ person฀ at฀ risk฀ of฀ being฀ accused฀ of฀ imperial฀ chauvinism฀ (and฀ imprisoned).฀ Too฀ much฀ emphasis฀ on฀ the฀ particular—wherever฀ that฀ might฀be—led฀to฀charges฀of฀local฀nationalism,฀with฀the฀same฀result.฀To฀make฀ things฀ utterly฀ hopeless,฀ only฀ one฀ person,฀ Stalin,฀ knew฀ the฀ correct฀ balance.฀ For฀example,฀what฀word฀should฀one฀suggest฀as฀normative฀for฀a฀schoolbook฀in฀ Yupik฀Eskimo฀to฀name฀a฀hospital?฀If฀one฀used฀bolnitsa,฀a฀Russian฀borrowing,฀ then฀ one฀ was฀ accused฀ of฀ imperial฀ chauvinism.฀ If฀ one฀ coined฀ an฀ Eskimo฀ derivative,฀ aknighvik,฀ or฀ “place฀ where฀ one฀ is฀ sick,”฀ then฀ one฀ was฀ accused฀ of฀ local฀nationalism.฀No฀way฀out. 10.฀ This฀and฀other฀letters฀by฀and฀to฀Franz฀Boas฀are฀quoted฀from฀the฀collection฀ of฀Boas’s฀professional฀correspondence฀housed฀at฀the฀American฀Philosophical฀ Society฀in฀Philadelphia.฀I฀used฀microfilm฀copies฀at฀the฀New฀York฀Public฀Library,฀ as฀well฀as฀the฀collection฀of฀the฀American฀Museum฀of฀Natural฀History. 11.฀ Alexander฀Forstein฀was฀born฀in฀1904฀in฀Marseilles,฀to฀which฀his฀parents฀ had฀emigrated฀from฀southern฀Russia฀(presumably฀escaping฀from฀the฀pogroms).฀ In฀ 1911฀ he฀ was฀ brought฀ back฀ to฀ Russia฀ and฀ lived฀ in฀ Rostov.฀ He฀ entered฀ the฀ university฀ in฀ St.฀ Petersburg฀ in฀ the฀ Department฀ of฀ Ethnography,฀ graduated฀ in฀ 1926,฀ and฀ got฀ a฀ job฀ and฀ a฀ postgraduate฀ position฀ at฀ the฀ Institute฀ of฀ the฀ Northern฀Peoples.฀In฀1927฀Bogoraz฀sent฀him฀to฀Chukotka฀to฀conduct฀research฀ and฀to฀teach฀at฀a฀school฀there.฀In฀1927–29฀he฀lived฀on฀Cape฀Chaplin;฀in฀1929– 30฀he฀went฀to฀Khabarovsk,฀where฀he฀married;฀and฀in฀1930–33฀he฀returned฀to฀

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Chukotka,฀where฀he฀worked฀as฀director฀of฀social฀and฀cultural฀programs฀for฀the฀ District฀Executive฀Committee.฀In฀1933฀he฀returned฀to฀Leningrad฀and฀became฀ a฀research฀fellow฀at฀the฀Institute฀of฀Anthropology฀and฀Ethnography.฀In฀May฀ 1937฀ he฀ was฀ arrested฀ as฀ a฀ “Japanese฀ spy,”฀ allegedly฀ a฀ member฀ of฀ a฀ counterrevolutionary฀ organization฀ (clearly฀ invented฀ by฀ the฀ KGB)฀ led฀ by฀ another฀ Siberianist,฀ Yakov฀ Koshkin.฀ As฀ a฀ “member฀ of฀ this฀ organization,”฀ he฀ was฀ accused฀of฀counterrevolutionary฀propaganda฀among฀the฀native฀population฀of฀ Chukotka฀for฀secession฀of฀the฀Far฀East,฀as฀well฀as฀of฀counterrevolutionary฀work฀ among฀students฀and฀faculty฀of฀the฀Institute฀of฀the฀Northern฀Peoples฀against฀ Marxist฀theory฀in฀science.฀He฀was฀sentenced฀to฀ten฀years฀in฀labor฀camps,฀spent฀ the฀years฀in฀the฀Magadan฀area,฀was฀released฀in฀June฀1947,฀and฀went฀to฀live฀in฀ a฀small฀village฀in฀Kursk฀district.฀Later฀he฀moved฀to฀the฀Caucasus฀and฀worked฀ as฀head฀administrator฀at฀a฀power฀plant฀there.฀He฀was฀rehabilitated฀in฀1956.฀ He฀ never฀ returned฀ to฀ his฀ scholarly฀ research.฀ In฀ the฀ late฀ 1960s฀ a฀ Norwegian฀ linguist,฀Knut฀Bergsland,฀tried฀to฀find฀him฀and฀establish฀contact฀with฀him,฀but฀ Forstein฀abruptly฀refused฀all฀contact—he฀had฀had฀enough฀of฀this,฀he฀said. 12.฀ The฀phrase฀“national฀in฀its฀form฀and฀socialist฀in฀its฀content”฀is฀another฀ famous฀invention฀of฀Stalin’s,฀well฀known฀to฀everyone฀born฀in฀the฀Soviet฀Union฀ before฀the฀mid-1980s. 13.฀ “People฀ often฀ take฀ pride฀ in฀ their฀ national฀ history,฀ contending฀ that฀ ancient฀people฀are฀‘their’฀ancestors฀and฀some฀elements฀of฀ancient฀culture฀are฀ ‘their’฀cultural฀‘heritage.’฀Competition฀for฀ancestors฀[compare฀the฀subtitle฀of฀ Shnirelman’s฀1996฀book,฀Competition฀for฀ancestors฀.฀.฀.—N.V.]฀and฀heritages฀are฀ often฀connected฀with฀political฀disputes฀between฀neighboring฀nations.฀Because฀ nations฀and฀ethnic฀groups฀can฀be฀solid฀communities฀only฀synchronically฀and฀ are฀ diachronically฀ challengeable,฀ it฀ is฀ scientifically฀ not฀ very฀ meaningful฀ to฀ determine฀which฀ancient฀or฀medieval฀communities฀are฀their฀ancestors.฀This฀ should฀be฀better฀understood฀as฀a฀creation฀of฀myth฀than฀[as]฀academic฀research”฀ (Tomohiko฀2002:฀163). 14.฀ In฀this฀section฀of฀the฀chapter,฀I฀am฀drawing฀on฀materials฀from฀a฀symposium฀ titled฀ “Who฀ Owns฀ Siberian฀ Ethnography?”฀ held฀ at฀ the฀ Max฀ Planck฀ Institute฀ for฀ Social฀ Anthropology฀ in฀ Halle฀ (Saale),฀ Germany,฀ on฀ 7–9฀ March฀ 2002.฀ I฀ am฀ also฀ using฀ the฀ text฀ of฀ a฀ review฀ of฀ that฀ symposium฀ that฀ I฀ wrote฀ jointly฀with฀Anna฀Sirina฀(Vakhtin฀and฀Sirina฀2003;฀see฀also฀Gray,฀Vakhtin,฀and฀ Schweitzer฀forthcoming). 15.฀ I฀ list฀ here฀ only฀ some฀ of฀ these฀ young฀ scholars—those฀ who฀ worked฀ in฀ Siberia฀in฀the฀1990s฀and฀have฀already฀completed฀their฀research:฀David฀Anderson฀ (ethnic฀ processes฀ and฀ ethnic฀ identities฀ of฀ the฀ Taimyr฀ Evenki฀ and฀ Dolgan,฀ 1992–97);฀Alexia฀Bloch฀(Evenki฀residential฀schools฀and฀indigenous฀education,฀ 1996–98);฀ Atsusi฀ Esida฀ (the฀ social฀ and฀ cultural฀ situation฀ among฀ the฀ Nenets,฀ 1995–98);฀Bruce฀Grant฀(Sovietization฀among฀the฀Nivkhi฀of฀Sakhalin,฀1993–95);฀฀

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Patricia฀Gray฀(current฀social฀processes฀and฀power฀relations฀in฀Chukotka,฀1995– 96);฀ Anna฀ Kerttula฀ (Chukotkan฀ newcomers,฀ Yupik฀ Eskimos,฀ and฀ Chukchi฀ identity,฀ 1989–92);฀ David฀ Koester฀ (socialization฀ of฀ the฀ young฀ generation฀ of฀ Itel’mens฀ in฀ Kamchatka,฀ 1994–96);฀ Hiroki฀ Takakura฀ (social฀ landscape฀ and฀ reindeer฀herding฀among฀Evens฀and฀Yakuts฀in฀Yakutia,฀1996–99);฀Gail฀Fondahl฀ (the฀effects฀of฀industrialization฀on฀Evenki฀reindeer฀herding,฀1996–98);฀Peter฀ Schweitzer฀(social฀organization฀of฀indigenous฀peoples฀of฀Chukotka,฀1990–98).฀ These฀“veterans”฀have฀been฀followed฀by฀a฀strong฀new฀wave฀of฀young฀social฀ anthropologists฀who฀already฀work,฀or฀are฀planning฀to฀work,฀in฀Siberia. 16.฀ For฀books฀based฀on฀firsthand฀research฀in฀Siberia,฀see฀Anderson฀2000a,฀ Balzer฀ 1999,฀ Golovnev฀ and฀ Osherenko฀ 1999,฀ Grant฀ 1995,฀ Kasten฀ 2002b,฀ Kerttula฀ 2000,฀ and฀ Rethman฀ 2001.฀ Similar฀ to฀ these,฀ but฀ based฀ on฀ archival฀ research,฀is฀Slezkine฀1994. 17.฀ It฀looks฀as฀if฀the฀decline฀in฀the฀numbers฀of฀Russian฀Siberianists฀has฀now฀ ended,฀and฀an฀opposite฀tendency฀seems฀to฀be฀under฀way.฀Scholars฀from฀other฀ disciplines฀are฀turning฀to฀Siberian฀research;฀new฀centers฀are฀opening,฀and฀the฀ old฀ones฀are฀slowly฀recovering฀from฀the฀shock฀of฀the฀economic฀crisis฀of฀the฀ 1990s. 18.฀ Compare฀ the฀ excellent฀ discussion฀ of฀ the฀ difference฀ between฀ “rapid฀ cultural฀change”฀and฀“deterioration฀of฀culture”฀in฀the฀book฀Arctic:฀Contributions฀ to฀Social฀Science฀and฀Public฀Policy฀(1993).฀The฀book฀has฀as฀an฀appendix฀a฀document฀called฀“Arctic฀Social฀Science:฀An฀Agenda฀for฀Action,”฀written฀in฀1989.฀ Much฀of฀what฀it฀says฀about฀the฀American฀Arctic฀applies฀also฀to฀Siberia. 19.฀ The฀conference,฀organized฀by฀Peter฀Schweitzer,฀was฀titled฀“Siberia฀and฀ the฀Circumpolar฀North:฀A฀Contribution฀of฀Ethnology฀and฀NGOs.”

f o u r

In Search of Anthropology in China A Discipline Caught in a Web of Nation Building, Socialist Capitalism, and Globalization

Josephine Smart

T

he฀history฀of฀anthropology฀in฀China฀is฀poorly฀known฀outside฀of฀ China.฀ Among฀ the฀ small฀ body฀ of฀ publications฀ on฀ the฀ subject฀ in฀ English,฀Gregory฀Guldin’s฀monograph฀The฀Saga฀of฀Anthropology฀in฀China฀ (1994)฀and฀edited฀volume฀Anthropology฀in฀China฀(1990)฀are฀the฀most฀ comprehensive.฀Rather฀than฀repeat฀these฀historical฀accounts,฀in฀this฀ chapter฀ I฀ explore฀ the฀ discipline’s฀ transformations฀ in฀ the฀ context฀ of฀ tensions฀and฀alliances฀between฀China’s฀nation-building฀agenda฀(past฀ and฀present),฀as฀embodied฀in฀ideological฀rhetoric฀and฀praxis;฀socialist฀ capitalism,฀ which฀ arose฀ from฀ the฀ post-1978฀ economic฀ reform;฀ and฀ globalization,฀ in฀ the฀ form฀ of฀ networks฀ and฀ exchanges฀ with฀ persons฀ and฀ institutions฀ outside฀ China.฀ In฀ charting฀ these฀ transformations,฀ I฀ hope฀ to฀ convey฀ the฀ particularistic฀ nature฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ China฀ and฀offer฀some฀sense฀of฀its฀future฀direction.

A฀Brief฀History฀of฀Anthropology฀in฀China Guldin฀ described฀ the฀ history฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ China฀ as฀ neatly฀ segregated฀into฀four฀phases:฀the฀pre-1949฀phase,฀during฀which฀anthropologists฀“adopted฀Western฀approaches฀wholesale”;฀the฀Soviet฀phase,฀ from฀1940฀to฀the฀late฀1950s;฀the฀Mao฀phase,฀identified฀with฀the฀turbulent฀ ideological฀campaign฀of฀the฀Cultural฀Revolution,฀1957–77;฀and฀the฀post1978฀ economic฀ reform฀ phase,฀ which฀ saw฀ the฀ revival฀ and฀ expansion฀ of฀academic฀disciplines฀(including฀anthropology)฀in฀parallel฀with฀the฀ emergence฀of฀socialist฀capitalism฀(Guldin฀1994:฀6–9).

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A฀recent฀document฀produced฀by฀the฀Chinese฀government฀in฀its฀bid฀ to฀host฀the฀sixteenth฀congress฀of฀the฀International฀Union฀of฀Anthropological฀and฀Ethnological฀Sciences฀(IUAES)฀in฀2008฀identified฀a฀similar฀ chronology฀for฀the฀development฀of฀anthropology฀in฀China,฀with฀some฀ variations฀(China฀Applicant฀Committee฀2003a:฀1–2).฀According฀to฀it,฀the฀ pre-1945฀years฀were฀the฀“golden฀phase”฀of฀Chinese฀anthropology,฀marked฀ by฀active฀research฀and฀publishing.฀It฀was฀interrupted฀by฀the฀Japanese฀ invasion฀and฀the฀civil฀war฀between฀the฀Chinese฀Communist฀Party฀and฀ the฀Nationalist฀Party฀(Guomindang).฀The฀1950s฀were฀the฀“second฀golden฀ phase,”฀marked฀by฀the฀consolidation฀and฀expansion฀of฀ethnic฀minority฀ studies.฀Researchers฀(anthropologists฀and฀ethnologists)฀were฀collected฀ and฀housed฀together฀at฀the฀Central฀Institute฀for฀Nationalities฀in฀Beijing.฀ Finally,฀the฀years฀from฀1978฀to฀the฀present฀were฀the฀“third฀golden฀phase,”฀ characterized฀by฀a฀revival฀of฀anthropological฀departments฀and฀research฀ institutes฀throughout฀China฀and฀the฀increasing฀internationalization฀of฀ Chinese฀anthropology฀through฀faculty฀and฀student฀exchanges.฀In฀the฀ 1980s,฀selected฀work฀by฀Lewis฀Henry฀Morgan,฀Bronislaw฀Malinowski,฀ Claude฀Lévi-Strauss,฀Lucien฀Lévy-Bruhl,฀Margaret฀Mead,฀Ruth฀Benedict,฀ Leslie฀White,฀Franz฀Boas,฀Marvin฀Harris,฀Edmund฀Leach,฀A.฀R.฀RadcliffBrown,฀Elman฀Service,฀and฀several฀Russian฀and฀one฀Japanese฀scholar฀ were฀ translated฀ into฀ Chinese฀ (for฀ more฀ details,฀ see฀ China฀ Applicant฀ Committee฀2003c:฀6–7). Social฀anthropology฀and฀ethnology—which,฀as฀I฀discuss฀later,฀are฀not฀a฀ single฀discipline฀in฀the฀Chinese฀academic฀system—were฀first฀introduced฀ to฀China฀in฀the฀early฀twentieth฀century.฀Nankai฀University฀in฀Tianjin฀ was฀ the฀ first฀ institution฀ to฀ offer฀ a฀ course฀ in฀ anthropology,฀ in฀ 1923.฀ By฀1928฀the฀first฀department฀of฀ethnology฀and฀department฀of฀anthropology฀were฀created฀within฀the฀Academia฀Sinica฀in฀Beijing.฀In฀1926,฀Cai฀ Yuanpei฀published฀“Shuo฀minzuxue”฀(On฀ethnology),฀which฀became฀ a฀ seminal฀ work฀ for฀ subsequent฀ generations฀ of฀ Chinese฀ ethnologists฀ (China฀Applicant฀Committee฀2003c:฀2). The฀ early฀ introduction฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ China฀ was฀ dominated,฀ however,฀ by฀ physical฀ anthropology,฀ paleoanthropology,฀ and฀ archaeology.฀The฀archaeological฀project฀at฀Zhoukoudian,฀headed฀by฀Johann฀ Andersson,฀ Davidson฀ Black,฀ Pierre฀ Teilhard฀ de฀ Chardin,฀ and฀ others,฀ confirmed฀ the฀ discovery฀ of฀ Peking฀ Man฀ in฀ 1929.฀ This฀ breakthrough฀ contributed฀ to฀ the฀ early฀ consolidation฀ of฀ archaeology฀ as฀ a฀ separate฀ and฀independent฀discipline฀in฀China฀(Guldin฀1990:฀7).฀In฀conjunction,฀ physical฀anthropology฀and฀paleoanthropology฀were฀established฀early฀ on฀within฀independent฀institutional฀frames. In฀contrast,฀ethnology฀and฀social-cultural฀anthropology฀were฀offered฀ piecemeal฀ within฀ departments฀ of฀ history,฀ literature,฀ and฀ sociology฀

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throughout฀the฀1930s฀and฀1940s.฀Ethnology฀subsequently฀dominated฀ the฀discipline฀in฀terms฀of฀numbers฀of฀practitioners.฀The฀most฀recent฀ records฀show฀a฀total฀of฀sixty-three฀departments,฀institutes,฀or฀research฀ centers฀that฀support฀degree-granting฀training฀or฀research฀facilities฀in฀ anthropology,฀ethnology,฀or฀both฀(China฀Applicant฀Committee฀2003b).฀ Of฀these,฀fourteen฀institutions฀offer฀PhD฀programs฀ in฀anthropology,฀ ethnology,฀or฀both฀within฀greater฀China฀(including฀Hong฀Kong฀and฀ Taiwan).฀There฀were฀only฀two฀stand-alone฀departments฀of฀anthropology฀ in฀China฀proper฀(excluding฀Hong฀Kong฀and฀Taiwan):฀Zhongshan฀University฀in฀Guangdong฀province฀(also฀known฀as฀Sun฀Yat-sen฀University฀ as฀ of฀ 2003)฀ and฀ Yunnan฀ University฀ in฀ Yunnan฀ province.฀ It฀ is฀ worth฀ noting฀that฀doctoral฀training฀in฀anthropology฀in฀China฀is฀a฀post-1980฀ phenomenon฀(table฀4.1).

Foreign฀Influences฀and฀Local฀Situations Japan฀was฀the฀first฀source฀of฀influence฀in฀the฀development฀of฀anthropology฀ in฀ China,฀ around฀ the฀ turn฀ of฀ the฀ twentieth฀ century฀ (Guldin฀ 1994:฀ 34).฀ This฀ fact฀ speaks฀ of฀ two฀ historical฀ specificities.฀ The฀ first฀ is฀ the฀strong฀influence฀Japan฀had฀on฀the฀academic฀disciplines฀in฀China.฀ Japan฀was฀upheld฀as฀a฀model฀of฀modernity฀in฀the฀nineteenth฀and฀early฀ twentieth฀centuries.฀Many฀Chinese฀students฀received฀their฀university฀ educations฀in฀Japan฀long฀before฀Europe฀and฀the฀United฀States฀became฀ educational฀destinations.฀Second,฀Japan฀was฀the฀first฀nation฀in฀East฀Asia฀ to฀foster฀interests฀in฀anthropology,฀especially฀in฀human฀evolution. This฀Japanese฀influence฀was฀later฀overshadowed฀by฀Soviet,฀American,฀ European,฀ and฀ British฀ influences฀ as฀ foreign฀ researchers฀ and฀ scholars฀ arrived฀in฀China฀to฀conduct฀field฀research฀and฀to฀lecture฀in฀a฀visiting฀ capacity฀ at฀ Yanjing฀ University,฀ Tsinghua฀ University,฀ Peking฀ University,฀ and฀ other฀ key฀ institutions฀ in฀ the฀ north.฀ Many฀ of฀ these฀ foreign฀ scholars฀were฀prominent฀figures฀in฀their฀respective฀fields฀of฀physical฀ anthropology,฀paleoarchaeology,฀linguistic฀studies,฀sociology,฀and฀socialcultural฀anthropology.฀In฀addition,฀the฀strong฀linkage฀between฀Yanjing฀ University฀and฀the฀University฀of฀Chicago฀brought฀A.฀R.฀Radcliff-Brown฀ (1935),฀ Robert฀ Park฀ (1931–32),฀ and฀ Robert฀ Redfield฀ (1948)฀ to฀ China฀ (Guldin฀1994:฀43–46). Cai฀Yuanpei,฀the฀founder฀of฀anthropology฀in฀China,฀was฀educated฀at฀ the฀University฀of฀Leipzig,฀Germany,฀in฀1907–10.฀He฀then฀founded฀the฀ Academia฀Sinica฀in฀1928฀and฀set฀up฀an฀anthropology฀division฀within฀it฀ in฀1934,฀which฀provided฀the฀foundation฀for฀minority฀studies฀in฀China฀ (Guldin฀1994:฀31–33).฀The฀American฀model฀of฀four-field฀anthropology฀

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Table฀4.1฀ Institutions฀in฀China฀with฀PhD฀Programs฀in฀Anthropology,฀ Ethnology,฀or฀Both Department฀or฀Institution฀(Date฀of฀Formation),฀฀ Location

Year฀Program฀ Established

No.฀Faculty฀ Members฀in฀ Department฀or฀ Institution

Institute฀of฀Sociology฀and฀Anthropology฀(2000),฀ Peking฀University,฀Beijing

1987

49

Institute฀of฀Ethnology฀and฀Anthropology฀(2002),฀ Chinese฀Academy฀of฀Social฀Sciences฀(CASS,฀1956),฀ Beijing

2002

N/A

Research฀Institute฀of฀Ethnology฀and฀Sociology฀(1994),฀ Central฀Institute฀for฀Nationalities฀(1950),฀Beijing

1994

44

Research฀Institute฀of฀Languages฀and฀Ethnic฀ Minorities฀(N/A),฀Central฀Institute฀for฀Nationalities฀ (1950),฀Beijing

N/A

More฀than฀฀ 60

Institute฀of฀Vertebrate฀Paleontology฀and฀ Paleoanthropology฀(1953),฀Chinese฀Academy฀of฀ Sciences฀(1929),฀Beijing

N/A

109

Under฀฀ planning

65

Institute฀of฀Cultural฀Anthropology฀(1999),฀ Department฀of฀Sociology฀(1926),฀Tsinghua฀University฀ (1925),฀Beijing

1999

14

Research฀Centre฀for฀Ethnic฀Minorities฀in฀ Northwestern฀China,฀Lanzhou฀University฀(1950),฀ Lanzhou

N/A

22

Department฀of฀Anthropology฀(1997),฀Yunnan฀ University฀(1923),฀Kunming

1997

14

Research฀Institute฀of฀Ethnology฀and฀Sociology฀(2003),฀ South฀Central฀University฀for฀Nationalities,฀Wuhan

2003

24

Department฀of฀Anthropology฀(1948),฀Zhongshan฀ University฀(1924),฀renamed฀Sun฀Yat-sen฀University฀in฀ 2003,฀Guangzhou

1996

17

Department฀of฀Anthropology฀(1982),฀National฀ Taiwan฀University฀(1949),฀Taipei

N/A

23

Institute฀of฀Anthropology฀of฀Taiwan฀(1988),฀Taiwan฀ Tsinghua฀University,฀Xinzhu

N/A

13

Department฀of฀Anthropology฀(1980),฀Chinese฀ University฀of฀Hong฀Kong฀(1972),฀Hong฀Kong

1992

6

Research฀Centre฀for฀Socio-Cultural฀Anthropology฀ (2001),฀Institute฀of฀Sociology฀(1980),฀CASS฀(1956),฀ Beijing

Source:฀China฀Applicant฀Committee฀2003b.

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was฀introduced฀to฀China฀through฀American-trained฀Chinese฀students฀ such฀as฀Lin฀Huixiang฀of฀Xiamen฀University฀(MA฀1928,฀University฀of฀ Philippines;฀Lin฀was฀a฀student฀of฀Henry฀Otler฀Beyer’s,฀who฀was฀Harvard฀ trained),฀Wu฀Wenzao฀of฀Yanjing฀University฀(PhD฀1929,฀Columbia;฀a฀ student฀of฀Franz฀Boas’s),฀and฀Li฀Fanggui฀of฀the฀Academia฀Sinica฀(BA฀ 1926,฀Michigan;฀PhD฀1928,฀Chicago;฀a฀student฀of฀Edward฀Sapir’s฀and฀ Leonard฀Bloomfield’s฀in฀linguistics)฀(Guldin฀1994:฀30–37). The฀establishment฀of฀anthropology฀in฀China฀was฀not฀easy,฀and฀its฀ rocky฀journey฀of฀uneven฀development฀was฀symptomatic฀of฀ongoing฀ tensions฀ in฀ China฀ between฀ nationalism,฀ globalization,฀ and฀ reaction฀ against฀Western฀hegemony.฀It฀is฀not฀meaningful฀to฀speak฀of฀Chinese฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ unified฀ discipline฀ of฀ four฀ subfields฀ (archaeology,฀ social-cultural฀anthropology,฀linguistics,฀and฀physical฀anthropology).฀ The฀unconditional฀acceptance฀of฀the฀significance฀of฀archaeological฀and฀ physical฀anthropological฀knowledge฀for฀national฀interests฀has฀guaranteed฀ state฀funding฀and฀uninterrupted฀advancement฀in฀these฀fields฀over฀time,฀ despite฀the฀many฀political฀and฀economic฀storms฀the฀People’s฀Republic฀ of฀China฀(PRC)฀has฀weathered฀since฀it฀inception฀in฀1949.฀For฀instance,฀ anthropometry,฀the฀measurement฀of฀human฀physical฀features฀such฀as฀ head฀size฀and฀foot฀size,฀remains฀an฀important฀field฀of฀study฀in฀China฀ today,฀on฀the฀strength฀of฀its฀applied฀linkage฀with฀consumer฀product฀ development฀ in฀ Chinese฀ industries.฀ Linguistics฀ was฀ underdeveloped฀ and฀ remains฀ so฀ today,฀ with฀ a฀ narrow฀ focus฀ on฀ non-Han฀ languages.฀ Throughout฀China,฀sociocultural฀anthropology฀was฀more฀commonly฀ known฀ as฀ ethnology,฀ and฀ this฀ label฀ remains฀ in฀ use฀ today฀ as฀ a฀ result฀ ,฀ or฀ the฀ of฀ the฀ historical฀ subscription฀ to฀ ethnology฀ (minzuxue฀ study฀ of฀ nationalities฀ and฀ cultural฀ groups)฀ instead฀ of฀ anthropology฀ (renleixue฀ ,฀or฀the฀study฀of฀people,฀human฀beings),฀which฀likely฀ was฀influenced฀by฀Cai฀Yuanpie’s฀1926฀article฀“On฀Ethnology.” The฀origin฀of฀social฀anthropology฀in฀Western฀traditions฀was฀and฀still฀ is฀received฀in฀China฀with฀much฀ambivalence,฀ranging฀from฀rejection฀ to฀creative฀harnessing.฀This฀ambivalence฀toward฀and฀suspicion฀about฀ foreign฀ knowledge฀ was฀ amplified฀ during฀ the฀ latter฀ half฀ of฀ the฀ Qing฀ Dynasty฀as฀a฀result฀of฀the฀repeated฀humiliations฀the฀Qing฀government฀ experienced฀in฀the฀international฀political฀arena,฀such฀as฀its฀defeat฀in฀ the฀two฀Opium฀Wars฀of฀the฀1830s.฀A฀strong฀sentiment฀before฀and฀after฀ the฀fall฀of฀the฀Qing฀Dynasty฀in฀1911฀was฀the฀desire฀to฀harness฀Western฀ knowledge฀and฀technology฀for฀nation-building฀purposes.฀It฀was฀in฀this฀ context฀that฀the฀utility฀of฀sociocultural฀anthropology฀was฀prized฀during฀ the฀1930s:฀“This฀social฀science฀that฀Chinese฀like฀Fei฀[Xaiotong]฀were฀ going฀abroad฀to฀study฀was฀a฀field฀that฀most฀Chinese฀academics฀hoped฀

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would฀serve฀China฀in฀its฀struggle฀to฀become฀‘modern’฀and฀strong.฀Cai฀ Yuanpei฀ urged฀ that฀ ethnology฀ be฀ brought฀ to฀ China฀ not฀ just฀ to฀ add฀ another฀discipline฀to฀Chinese฀academia฀but฀to฀use฀it฀to฀formulate฀better฀ social฀policy”฀(Guldin฀1994:฀46). This฀nationalistic,฀nation-building฀discourse฀was฀repeated฀when฀Liang฀ Zhaotao฀met฀with฀key฀officials฀in฀the฀Ministry฀of฀Education฀to฀argue฀ for฀the฀(re)installation฀of฀a฀department฀of฀anthropology฀at฀Zhongshan฀ University฀in฀1980.฀Liang฀argued,฀“All฀other฀countries฀have฀this฀discipline;฀ why฀not฀us?฀We฀have฀such฀a฀glorious฀culture฀and฀large฀population.฀Why฀ not฀us?฀We฀Chinese฀must฀study฀our฀one฀billion฀Chinese!฀We฀must฀study฀ our฀bountiful฀material—if฀not฀us,฀who฀will?฀We฀can’t฀leave฀this฀science฀ only฀to฀the฀foreigners!฀Let฀anthropology฀make฀its฀contribution฀to฀the฀ Four฀Modernizations!”฀(Guldin฀1994:฀12). The฀American฀vision฀of฀anthropology฀as฀a฀four-field฀discipline฀had฀ a฀ stronger฀ influence฀ in฀ South฀ China.฀ The฀ Department฀ of฀ Anthropology฀ at฀ Zhongshan฀ University฀ was฀ established฀ in฀ 1948฀ to฀ offer฀ fourfield฀ undergraduate฀ training;฀ it฀ was฀ interrupted฀ from฀ 1949฀ until฀ its฀ reinstallation฀in฀1980.฀According฀to฀Guldin฀(1994),฀opposition฀to฀its฀ reinstallation฀was฀widespread฀even฀among฀trained฀anthropologists฀and฀ social฀scientists฀in฀China฀at฀the฀time.฀One฀of฀the฀greatest฀barriers฀to฀ the฀development฀of฀a฀unified฀four-field฀anthropology฀in฀China฀is฀intradisciplinary฀ resistance฀ to฀ merging฀ existing฀ autonomous฀ institutions,฀ which฀are฀highly฀diverse฀in฀their฀funding฀security,฀disciplinary฀interests,฀ and฀identity. The฀general฀underdevelopment฀of฀anthropology฀in฀China฀today฀(excluding฀Hong฀Kong฀and฀Taiwan,฀which฀I฀discuss฀later)฀is฀a฀consequence฀ of฀the฀ideological฀struggles฀and฀centralized฀political฀system฀particular฀to฀ the฀post-1949฀Chinese฀Communist฀state.฀First,฀within฀a฀formal฀hierarchy฀ of฀academic฀subjects,฀anthropology฀is฀ranked฀as฀a฀second-tier฀discipline.฀ This฀state-imposed฀ranking฀defines฀the฀inferior฀status฀of฀anthropology฀ vis-à-vis฀sociology฀and฀ethnology,฀which฀are฀first-tier฀disciplines,฀and฀it฀ directly฀affects฀funding฀and฀resource฀allocations฀(from฀both฀the฀central฀ government฀ and฀ provincial฀ governments)฀ and฀ the฀ types฀ of฀ students฀ who฀elect฀to฀major฀in฀anthropology.฀Entry฀into฀universities฀in฀China฀ is฀based฀on฀a฀series฀of฀elimination฀processes,฀aided฀by฀examinations฀ and฀tests.฀Only฀the฀best฀performers,฀a฀fraction฀of฀the฀entire฀high฀school฀ student฀ body฀ in฀ any฀ given฀ graduating฀ year,฀ get฀ admission฀ into฀ the฀ university฀system.฀These฀students฀want฀to฀study฀something฀“useful”฀and฀ “marketable”฀in฀preparation฀for฀improved฀life฀chances฀and฀employment฀ prospects.฀Anthropology฀has฀neither฀the฀status฀nor฀the฀image฀to฀attract฀ the฀best฀students.

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A฀second฀factor฀accounting฀for฀the฀underdevelopment฀of฀anthropology฀ in฀China฀is฀the฀ideological฀premise฀of฀Marxism฀and฀communism,฀as฀ understood฀ within฀ the฀ Chinese฀ context.฀ According฀ to฀ this฀ ideology,฀ anthropology฀is฀a฀“bourgeois”฀discipline฀that฀deserves฀to฀be฀curtailed.฀ This฀line฀of฀thinking฀and฀action฀was฀escalated฀to฀the฀extreme฀during฀the฀ Cultural฀Revolution฀(1967–77).฀The฀interruption฀of฀formal฀education฀at฀ that฀time฀did฀tremendous฀damage฀to฀anthropology฀and฀other฀disciplines฀ by฀ creating฀ discontinuity฀ in฀ human฀ resource฀ development฀ and฀ the฀ transmission฀ and฀ creation฀ of฀ knowledge.฀ Even฀ earlier,฀ in฀ 1949,฀ the฀ anthropology฀department฀at฀Zhongshan฀University฀in฀Guangzhou฀(in฀ the฀ southern฀ province฀ of฀ Guangdong,฀ adjacent฀ to฀ Hong฀ Kong)฀ was฀ closed฀down.฀It฀had฀been฀the฀only฀free-standing฀department฀of฀anthropology฀in฀the฀country,฀and฀it฀remained฀so฀after฀its฀reopening฀in฀1980฀until฀ a฀department฀of฀anthropology฀was฀established฀at฀Yunnan฀University฀in฀ 1997.฀Anthropology฀in฀Chinese฀universities฀is฀usually฀subsumed฀under฀ or฀joined฀with฀history,฀sociology,฀or฀other฀disciplines฀in฀the฀humanities฀ and฀social฀sciences. As฀a฀third฀factor,฀the฀post-1949฀PRC฀government฀did฀not฀welcome฀ criticism฀ and฀ prohibited฀ critical฀ social฀ studies฀ that฀ might฀ call฀ into฀ question฀the฀authority฀of฀the฀state฀and฀its฀ideological฀premises.฀What฀ it฀allowed฀and฀supported฀was฀ethnology—the฀descriptive฀study฀of฀nonHan฀ people฀ (“ethnic฀ minorities”)฀ and฀ their฀ cultures.฀ Ethnology฀ was฀ and฀is฀intended฀to฀serve฀the฀interests฀of฀the฀state฀in฀its฀governance฀of฀ non-Han฀people฀within฀the฀Chinese฀polity.฀Ethnology฀remains฀to฀date฀a฀ first-tier฀discipline฀and฀is฀an฀important฀training฀ground฀for฀sociocultural฀ anthropologists฀in฀China. The฀tradition฀of฀studying฀non-Han฀minorities฀and฀doing฀descriptive฀ cultural฀studies฀of฀rituals฀and฀artifacts฀continues฀in฀Chinese฀research,฀ even฀in฀sociocultural฀anthropology,฀but฀a฀new,฀permissible฀field฀of฀study฀ has฀emerged฀since฀about฀1980.฀That฀is฀the฀field฀of฀rural฀development.฀ Given฀the฀rapid฀rate฀of฀rural฀urbanization฀and฀economic฀development฀ throughout฀China฀after฀the฀introduction฀of฀economic฀reform฀in฀1978,฀ the฀new฀focus฀on฀rural฀development฀in฀anthropology฀is฀seen฀as฀coherent฀ with฀state฀interests,฀so฀long฀as฀it฀remains฀descriptive.฀The฀development฀of฀ a฀critical฀anthropology฀independent฀of฀state฀ideology฀and฀intervention฀ may฀be฀a฀long฀time฀coming฀in฀China.

Anthropology฀in฀Taiwan฀and฀Hong฀Kong Anthropology฀in฀Taiwan฀and฀Hong฀Kong฀developed฀along฀paths฀quite฀ different฀from฀that฀of฀anthropology฀in฀the฀PRC,฀for฀historical฀reasons.฀

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The฀Guomindang฀(GMD)฀established฀a฀parallel฀government฀in฀Taiwan฀ in฀ 1949฀ when฀ the฀ Chinese฀ Communist฀ Party฀ took฀ over฀ China.฀ Six฀ institutions฀in฀Taiwan฀today฀offer฀research฀or฀teaching฀facilities฀related฀ to฀anthropology฀or฀ethnology,฀all฀of฀them฀created฀after฀1950.฀There฀is฀a฀ strong฀emphasis฀on฀languages,฀archaeology,฀and฀studies฀of฀indigenous฀ peoples.฀Two฀institutions,฀the฀National฀Taiwan฀University฀and฀Taiwan฀ Tsinghua฀ University,฀ offer฀ graduate฀ training฀ in฀ anthropology฀ (see฀ table฀4.1).฀Several฀foreign฀countries฀have฀had฀significant฀influence฀on฀ Taiwanese฀society,฀due฀to฀either฀colonial฀or฀geopolitical฀legacies.฀Taiwan฀ was฀a฀colony฀of฀the฀Netherlands฀(1624–61)฀and฀Japan฀(1895–1945),฀and฀ the฀ GMD฀ government฀ has฀ maintained฀ close฀ political฀ relations฀ with฀ the฀ United฀ States฀ government฀ since฀ the฀ 1930s.฀ Many฀ contemporary฀ Taiwanese฀scholars฀were฀trained฀in฀the฀United฀States.฀The฀development฀ of฀anthropology฀in฀Taiwan฀has฀been฀influenced฀by฀past฀and฀current฀ Japanese,฀Dutch,฀and฀American฀contacts. Even฀though฀Hong฀Kong฀did฀not฀return฀to฀Chinese฀sovereignty฀until฀ 1997,฀ it฀ has฀ a฀ long฀ history฀ of฀ social฀ and฀ economic฀ integration฀ with฀ southern฀China.฀The฀intellectual฀exchange฀between฀the฀departments฀ of฀anthropology฀at฀the฀Chinese฀University฀of฀Hong฀Kong฀(CUHK)฀and฀ Zhongshan฀University฀beginning฀in฀1980฀was฀an฀important฀juncture฀ in฀the฀development฀of฀anthropology฀in฀post-1978฀China.฀Until฀then,฀ however,฀anthropology฀had฀been฀virtually฀ignored฀in฀Hong฀Kong. China฀ceded฀Hong฀Kong฀to฀Britain฀in฀1941.฀The฀first฀university฀there,฀ the฀University฀of฀Hong฀Kong฀(HKU),฀was฀a฀colonial฀establishment฀that฀ provided฀higher฀education฀in฀the฀English฀language฀to฀a฀small฀number฀ of฀students฀selected฀for฀their฀high฀achievement฀in฀public฀examinations.฀ HKU฀was฀the฀training฀ground฀for฀senior฀civil฀servants฀for฀the฀British฀ colonial฀administration.฀It฀remained฀the฀only฀university฀in฀Hong฀Kong฀ until฀the฀Chinese฀University฀of฀Hong฀Kong฀was฀established฀in฀the฀early฀ 1970s.฀There฀was฀never฀a฀department฀of฀anthropology฀at฀HKU,฀even฀ though฀ anthropology฀ had฀ been฀ a฀ well-established฀ discipline฀ in฀ key฀ British฀universities฀for฀a฀long฀time. The฀ omission฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ the฀ curriculum฀ at฀ HKU฀ reflects฀ two฀dimensions฀of฀the฀colonial฀experience฀in฀Hong฀Kong.฀First,฀in฀the฀ British฀tradition,฀anthropology฀was฀a฀servant฀of฀colonialism,฀in฀that฀ it฀provided฀relevant฀information฀about฀the฀“natives”฀that฀might฀facilitate฀effective฀colonial฀administration.฀The฀study฀of฀colonized฀people฀ was฀for฀a฀long฀time฀done฀by฀and฀for฀the฀colonizers.฀For฀British฀colonial฀ administrators฀to฀learn฀about฀Chinese฀customs,฀rituals,฀and฀history฀in฀ their฀home฀institutions฀in฀Britain฀was฀fine,฀but฀it฀was฀not฀a฀mandate฀of฀ the฀colonial฀government฀to฀encourage฀colonized฀people฀to฀study฀their฀ own฀social฀and฀cultural฀change฀under฀colonialism.

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Second,฀there฀was฀no฀demand฀for฀anthropology฀among฀students฀or฀ society฀at฀large.฀Public฀awareness฀and฀understanding฀of฀anthropology฀ are฀still฀very฀limited฀in฀Hong฀Kong.฀This฀lack฀of฀appreciation฀for฀anthropology฀may฀have฀stemmed฀from฀two฀sources:฀anthropology’s฀origin฀in฀ the฀West฀(even฀though฀its฀praxis฀is฀not฀exclusively฀of฀Western฀origin)฀ and฀the฀fact฀that฀most฀people’s฀main฀concern฀about฀higher฀education฀is฀ the฀postgraduation฀return฀for฀their฀investment฀in฀terms฀of฀employment฀ prospects,฀income฀level,฀and฀job฀security.฀For฀a฀long฀time฀the฀goal฀among฀ university฀graduates฀was฀to฀get฀a฀government฀post,฀which฀was฀a฀de฀facto฀ life-time฀ meal฀ ticket.฀ Since฀ Hong฀ Kong฀ “took฀ off”฀ in฀ the฀ 1960s฀ and฀ transformed฀itself฀into฀a฀global฀city฀of฀affluence,฀university฀graduates฀ are฀even฀more฀preoccupied฀with฀postgraduation฀employment฀prospects.฀ Hong฀Kong฀is฀ruled฀by฀the฀motto,฀“Money฀is฀everything,”฀a฀mind-set฀that฀ is฀gaining฀currency฀rapidly฀in฀the฀prosperous฀coastal฀cities฀and฀special฀ economic฀ zones฀ in฀ China.฀ The฀ idea฀ of฀ studying฀ something฀ “useful”฀ and฀ “practical”฀ that฀ will฀ guarantee฀ employment฀ after฀ graduation฀ is฀ stronger฀than฀ever.฀Top฀students฀compete฀fiercely฀to฀go฀into฀commerce,฀ business฀management,฀engineering,฀law,฀medicine,฀and฀accounting,฀on฀ the฀assumption,฀rooted฀in฀well-established฀attitudes฀and฀worldviews,฀ that฀ these฀ subjects฀ will฀ pave฀ the฀ way฀ to฀ easy฀ employment฀ and฀ high฀ income.฀Anthropology฀ranks฀extremely฀low฀on฀this฀market-driven฀scale฀ of฀worthiness. In฀1973,฀Professor฀Chiao฀Chien,฀a฀Taiwanese฀Chinese฀trained฀in฀the฀ United฀ States,฀ joined฀ the฀ sociology-anthropology฀ department฀ at฀ the฀ new฀ Chinese฀ University฀ of฀ Hong฀ Kong฀ and฀ was฀ given฀ a฀ mandate฀ to฀ start฀up฀an฀independent฀department฀of฀anthropology.฀Established฀in฀ 1980,฀this฀department฀remains฀the฀only฀department฀of฀anthropology฀ among฀the฀eight฀universities฀in฀Hong฀Kong฀today.฀CUHK฀distinguished฀ itself฀from฀HKU฀by฀assuming฀an฀“American”฀outlook,฀in฀contrast฀to฀the฀ British฀image฀and฀structure฀of฀HKU.฀It฀was฀perhaps฀this฀“American”-style฀ liberalism฀and฀venture฀seeking฀that฀brought฀anthropology฀to฀CUHK.฀ The฀department฀at฀CUHK฀admits฀only฀twenty฀students฀per฀year฀into฀ its฀undergraduate฀program.฀Most฀undergraduate฀students฀are฀female.฀ It฀supports฀a฀good-size฀graduate฀program฀at฀both฀MA฀and฀PhD฀levels,฀ with฀students฀from฀Hong฀Kong฀and฀mainland฀China฀at฀a฀fairly฀balanced฀ gender฀ratio.฀Most฀of฀them฀do฀fieldwork฀in฀Hong฀Kong,฀China,฀or฀other฀ Asian฀locales.฀In฀general,฀however,฀graduate฀students฀in฀China฀find฀it฀ nearly฀impossible฀to฀do฀fieldwork฀outside฀the฀country,฀because฀of฀limited฀ funding,฀lack฀of฀support฀from฀the฀government฀for฀overseas฀fieldwork,฀ and฀sometimes฀a฀lack฀of฀proficiency฀in฀foreign฀languages.฀Though฀all฀ students฀in฀China฀and฀Hong฀Kong฀receive฀training฀in฀English,฀the฀level฀ of฀proficiency฀is฀uneven,฀and฀some฀students฀cannot฀work฀effectively฀in฀

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the฀English฀medium.฀This฀further฀limits฀their฀opportunity฀and฀desire฀to฀ do฀fieldwork฀outside฀their฀home฀locale,฀even฀if฀funding฀and฀institutional฀ support฀are฀in฀place.

Ethnology฀or฀Sociocultural฀Anthropology:฀฀ What’s฀in฀a฀Name? The฀coexistence฀of฀ethnology฀and฀sociocultural฀anthropology฀as฀distinct฀ disciplines฀in฀China฀today,฀juxtaposed฀with฀officials’฀and฀academics’฀ common฀use฀of฀the฀terms฀ethnology,฀sociology,฀and฀anthropology฀as฀synonymous฀and฀interchangeable,฀can฀be฀mystifying.฀The฀state’s฀ranking฀ of฀ ethnology฀ as฀ a฀ first-tier฀ discipline฀ and฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ secondtier฀one฀may฀add฀to฀the฀confusion฀for฀readers฀who฀consider฀the฀two฀ disciplines฀to฀be฀equals.฀It฀is฀useful฀for฀non-Chinese฀readers฀to฀remember฀ that฀the฀contents฀and฀structure฀of฀anthropology฀are฀not฀identical฀or฀ uniform฀around฀the฀world,฀past฀or฀present.฀Ethnology฀and฀anthropology฀ departments฀ are฀ co-present฀ in฀ Europe฀ and฀ other฀ parts฀ of฀ the฀ world฀ today,฀and฀their฀coexistence฀speaks฀of฀the฀historical฀specificity฀of฀the฀ development฀ of฀ these฀ disciplines฀ in฀ a฀ given฀ place฀ in฀ the฀ context฀ of฀ cultural฀diffusion,฀colonialism,฀and฀globalization.฀Similarly,฀the฀situation฀ in฀China฀today฀requires฀historical฀contextualization,฀along฀three฀main฀ axes. The฀first฀axis฀is฀that฀of฀the฀open฀playing฀field฀that฀existed฀in฀anthropology’s฀formative฀years,฀the฀1920s฀and฀1930s.฀Chinese฀anthropologies฀ and฀ other฀ social฀ sciences฀ were฀ strongly฀ shaped฀ in฀ those฀ decades฀ by฀ multiple฀ streams฀ of฀ external฀ influence฀ from฀ places฀ including฀ Japan,฀ Europe,฀ Russia,฀ and฀ the฀ United฀ States.฀ No฀ single฀ force฀ of฀ influence฀ dominated,฀and฀there฀was฀no฀“Chinese”฀school฀or฀tradition฀in฀anthropological฀knowledge฀to฀challenge฀these฀diverse฀and฀rich฀external฀influences.฀ The฀ American฀ conception฀ of฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ four-field฀ discipline฀ did฀ not฀ dominate฀ the฀ institutional฀ structure฀ or฀ academic฀ discourse฀in฀China฀in฀the฀early฀twentieth฀century.฀The฀labels฀ethnology฀ and฀anthropology฀were฀both฀used.฀Generally,฀American฀influence฀was฀ considered฀stronger฀in฀the฀south฀than฀in฀the฀north.฀By฀1949,฀contact฀ with฀the฀West฀was฀cut฀off,฀and฀academic฀exchange฀with฀Russia฀intensified฀ throughout฀the฀1950s,฀under฀state฀sponsorship. The฀second฀axis฀is฀that฀of฀state฀intervention.฀As฀I฀mentioned฀earlier,฀ social฀ researchers฀ and฀ scholars฀ from฀ throughout฀ the฀ country฀ were฀ housed฀ centrally฀ within฀ the฀ institutional฀ framework฀ of฀ the฀ Central฀ Institute฀for฀Nationalities฀beginning฀in฀1950.฀They฀were฀encouraged฀to฀ study฀non-Han฀nationalities฀exclusively,฀in฀what฀was฀officially฀called฀

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ethnology.฀This฀state฀intervention฀directly฀contributed฀to฀ethnology’s฀ institutional฀dominance฀over฀anthropology฀in฀the฀PRC,฀reinforced฀by฀ state-regulated฀funding฀policies฀and฀the฀government’s฀tiered฀ranking฀ system฀ for฀ the฀ disciplines.฀ This฀ bureaucratic฀ intervention฀ reinforced฀ the฀existing฀fragmentation฀of฀the฀subfields฀of฀anthropology฀and฀their฀ competition฀over฀disciplinary฀boundaries฀and฀access฀to฀resources฀and฀ funding.฀It฀is฀precisely฀this฀intradisciplinary฀competition,฀in฀addition฀ to฀the฀independent฀development฀of฀each฀well-established฀subfield฀over฀ many฀decades,฀that฀has฀been฀the฀source฀of฀greatest฀resistance฀to฀the฀post1978฀effort฀by฀select฀institutions฀to฀establish฀four-field฀anthropology฀in฀ China.฀The฀distinction฀between฀ethnology฀(minzuxue)฀and฀anthropology฀ (releixue)฀has฀been฀firmly฀established฀in฀China฀and฀will฀likely฀persist฀ until฀further฀state฀intervention. The฀third฀historical฀axis฀is฀the฀post-1978฀effort฀to฀reintroduce฀anthropology฀by฀Zhongshan฀University฀(1980)฀and฀Xiamen฀University฀(1984).฀ This฀effort฀gained฀wider฀currency฀as฀the฀opportunity฀for฀overseas฀studies฀ and฀academic฀exchanges฀increased฀under฀the฀rubric฀of฀the฀Open฀Door฀ Policy.฀The฀effort฀to฀establish฀anthropology฀in฀China฀since฀the฀1980s฀is฀ an฀interesting฀indication฀of฀two฀intersecting฀forces.฀The฀first฀is฀American฀ hegemony฀over฀the฀discipline฀throughout฀the฀world,฀as฀measured฀by฀ the฀universal฀currency฀of฀the฀concept฀of฀four-field฀anthropology฀and฀ the฀ practice฀ of฀ renaming฀ what฀ was฀ previously฀ called฀ ethnology฀ as฀ “social”฀or฀“cultural”฀anthropology.฀The฀second฀is฀the฀growth฀of฀Western฀ influence฀in฀post-1978฀China,฀over฀everything฀from฀consumer฀culture฀ to฀academic฀disciplinary฀structure.฀Chinese฀anthropologies฀had฀their฀ origins฀in฀Western฀influences฀at฀the฀turn฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century฀but฀ were฀forced฀to฀develop฀on฀their฀own฀from฀1949฀to฀1978.฀Now฀the฀field฀ is฀once฀more฀wide฀open฀to฀external฀influences.฀This฀time,฀American฀ dominance฀is฀likely฀to฀overshadow฀the฀other฀streams฀of฀influence.

“Soft”฀versus฀“Hard”฀Science:฀An฀Image฀Problem฀for฀ Anthropology The฀Chinese฀are฀known฀for฀their฀respect฀for฀education฀and฀their฀subscription฀to฀Confucianist฀ethics,฀perpetuated฀by฀a฀well-established฀system฀ for฀ the฀ selection฀ of฀ government฀ officials฀ based฀ on฀ academic฀ merits.฀ Scholar-officials฀must฀pass฀a฀series฀of฀public฀examinations฀before฀they฀ are฀eventually฀appointed฀to฀a฀government฀post,฀a฀system฀that฀originated฀ in฀the฀Qin฀Dynasty,฀more฀than฀two฀thousand฀years฀ago.฀In฀preparation฀ for฀these฀public฀examinations,฀young฀men฀once฀spent฀years฀reading฀ the฀ Confucian฀ classics฀ according฀ to฀ a฀ curriculum฀ stipulated฀ by฀ the฀

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imperial฀court.฀These฀classics฀dealt฀with฀subjects฀that฀would฀be฀familiar฀ to฀students฀today฀in฀philosophy,฀psychology,฀political฀science,฀social฀ studies,฀folklore,฀anthropology,฀public฀administration,฀and฀economics.฀ In฀short,฀the฀governmental฀bureaucracy฀of฀China฀until฀1911฀was฀staffed฀ by฀scholars฀trained฀in฀the฀humanities฀and฀social฀sciences. Once฀they฀were฀on฀the฀job,฀these฀scholar-officials฀were฀expected฀to฀ learn฀about฀the฀sciences฀relevant฀to฀water฀control,฀agriculture,฀mining,฀ energy฀extraction,฀and฀animal฀husbandry,฀in฀order฀to฀fulfill฀their฀expected฀role฀in฀improving฀people’s฀livelihoods.฀They฀were฀also฀expected฀ to฀ learn฀ about฀ law฀ and฀ punishment฀ (for฀ the฀ maintenance฀ of฀ social฀ order),฀astronomy,฀military฀strategies฀and฀technology,฀and฀historical฀documentation฀and฀to฀acquire฀other฀skills฀that฀would฀contribute฀to฀national฀ defense฀and฀governance.฀Their฀basic฀training฀in฀the฀humanities฀and฀ social฀sciences฀formed฀the฀foundation฀upon฀which฀they฀later฀acquired฀ knowledge฀in฀sciences฀and฀technology.฀Given฀this฀historical฀emphasis฀ on฀the฀humanities฀and฀social฀sciences,฀one฀might฀expect฀anthropology฀ to฀have฀gained฀acceptance฀and฀popular฀appeal฀in฀China.฀That฀such฀is฀ not฀the฀case฀requires฀an฀explanation. In฀contemporary฀Chinese฀societies,฀both฀in฀China฀and฀overseas,฀it฀is฀ a฀common฀observation฀that฀parents฀and฀students฀strongly฀favor฀certain฀ subject฀matters฀that฀they฀consider฀desirable฀and฀useful.฀These฀subjects฀ tend฀to฀fall฀into฀two฀major฀categories:฀the฀sciences฀(e.g.,฀engineering,฀ computer฀science,฀industrial฀chemistry,฀biology)฀and฀professional฀studies฀ (e.g.,฀accounting,฀education,฀medicine,฀dentistry,฀pharmacy,฀business฀ management).฀These฀widely฀shared฀preferences฀among฀the฀Chinese฀are฀ also฀observed฀in฀populations฀of฀non-Chinese฀origin;฀they฀are฀shared฀ sentiments฀that฀speak฀of฀the฀power฀of฀the฀market-economy฀mentality,฀ which฀ equates฀ educational฀ investment฀ with฀ returns฀ in฀ income฀ and฀ status฀and฀which฀defines฀the฀worth฀of฀knowledge฀by฀its฀marketability.฀ The฀ shared฀ concern฀ about฀ prospects฀ for฀ income-generating฀ employment฀after฀graduation฀also฀speaks฀of฀the฀powerful฀grip฀of฀the฀market฀ economy฀over฀our฀everyday฀lives,฀in฀which฀our฀existence฀and฀well-being฀ are฀determined฀by฀our฀access฀to฀money—for฀most฀of฀us฀this฀access฀is฀ facilitated฀by฀employment—which฀pays฀for฀all฀the฀goods฀and฀services฀ we฀depend฀on. Within฀the฀context฀of฀the฀market฀economy,฀one฀can฀make฀sense฀of฀ the฀overrepresentation฀of฀women฀among฀anthropology฀undergraduates฀ in฀Hong฀Kong.฀Hong฀Kong฀is฀modern฀and฀Westernized,฀and฀it฀has฀a฀ high฀rate฀of฀female฀labor฀participation.฀But฀certain฀“traditional”฀values฀ place฀ differential฀ expectations฀ on฀ the฀ sexes.฀ A฀ man฀ is฀ still฀ expected฀ to฀be฀the฀breadwinner,฀the฀head฀of฀the฀household,฀the฀leader฀of฀the฀

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pack.฀Women฀who฀marry฀well฀are฀admired฀for฀their฀luxury฀of฀staying฀ home฀and฀having฀an฀easy฀life.฀Stay-at-home฀husbands฀are฀not฀admired฀ in฀the฀same฀way.฀Thus,฀it฀is฀more฀acceptable฀for฀young฀women฀than฀ for฀young฀men฀to฀study฀something฀“frivolous”฀and฀“without฀obvious฀ utility”—such฀as฀anthropology.฀In฀the฀rest฀of฀China฀today,฀unlike฀in฀ Hong฀Kong,฀the฀gender฀ratio฀among฀anthropology฀students฀is฀described฀ as฀quite฀balanced.฀I฀wonder฀if฀this฀will฀change฀as฀China฀progresses฀along฀ its฀current฀trajectory฀of฀economic฀development฀and฀integration฀with฀the฀ global฀economy.฀Will฀the฀penetration฀of฀the฀free-market฀economy฀revive฀ some฀“traditional”฀expectations฀of฀sex฀roles?฀Will฀we฀see฀in฀the฀future฀ a฀steady฀decline฀in฀the฀number฀of฀male฀students฀in฀anthropology? The฀preference฀for฀the฀sciences฀and฀professional฀degrees฀was฀established฀well฀before฀the฀contemporary฀period.฀I฀believe฀the฀qualitative฀ switch฀from฀an฀emphasis฀on฀the฀humanities฀and฀social฀sciences฀to฀the฀ sciences฀and฀professional฀degrees฀took฀place฀in฀the฀1880s฀in฀reaction฀to฀ China’s฀repeated฀defeats฀at฀the฀hands฀of฀European฀powers,฀which฀won฀ on฀the฀strength฀of฀their฀greater฀technology฀in฀military฀weapons฀and฀ transport.฀The฀Qing฀Dynasty,฀labeled฀the฀“sick฀man฀of฀Asia,”฀mounted฀ a฀major฀reform฀effort฀near฀the฀end฀of฀its฀reign฀to฀modernize฀the฀nation.฀ One฀of฀its฀efforts฀involved฀sending฀selected฀young฀boys฀and฀teenagers฀to฀ Europe฀and฀the฀United฀States฀for฀education฀during฀the฀1870s฀and฀1880s.฀ These฀ boys฀ were฀ put฀ through฀ elementary,฀ secondary,฀ and฀ university฀ educations฀to฀acquire฀training฀in฀engineering฀and฀other฀sciences,฀so฀ that฀they฀could฀contribute฀to฀the฀modernization฀of฀the฀nation฀upon฀ their฀return.฀They฀were฀told฀to฀learn฀Western฀knowledge฀to฀be฀used฀in฀ the฀Chinese฀context.฀The฀state’s฀emphasis฀on฀the฀sciences฀during฀this฀ period฀of฀reform฀was฀clearly฀a฀departure฀from฀the฀traditional฀mode฀of฀ training฀in฀the฀humanities฀and฀social฀sciences฀expected฀of฀its฀chosen฀ bureaucrats.฀After฀the฀fall฀of฀the฀Qing฀Dynasty฀in฀1911,฀Western฀thought฀ and฀technology฀continued฀to฀be฀viewed฀favorably฀by฀both฀Communists฀ and฀Nationalists฀in฀their฀struggle฀for฀control฀and฀survival.฀In฀the฀post1949฀period฀of฀nation฀rebuilding,฀the฀emphasis฀on฀the฀sciences฀and฀ “useful”฀or฀“practical”฀knowledge฀continued.฀The฀most฀recent฀group฀ of฀ Chinese฀ leaders,฀ who฀ took฀ office฀ in฀ 2002,฀ are฀ all฀ men฀ trained฀ in฀ engineering.

Network฀Building฀and฀Institutional฀Linkages:฀ Current฀Situations฀and฀Future฀Trends Scholars฀in฀China฀share฀the฀opinion฀that฀institutions฀in฀northern฀China฀ tend฀ to฀ be฀ more฀ conservative฀ and฀ politically฀ oriented฀ than฀ those฀ in฀

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southern฀China,฀because฀of฀their฀proximity฀to฀the฀seat฀of฀administrative฀ power฀in฀Beijing.฀In฀the฀south,฀distance฀from฀Beijing฀and฀the฀legacy฀of฀ overseas฀contacts฀made฀through฀out-migration฀support฀a฀more฀progressive฀outlook.฀Until฀the฀opening฀up฀of฀China฀in฀1978฀to฀welcome฀foreign฀ investment฀ and฀ technology฀ in฀ support฀ of฀ the฀ Four฀ Modernizations,฀ contact฀ with฀ the฀ outside฀ world฀ was฀ tightly฀ controlled.฀ Few฀ Chinese฀ citizens฀had฀the฀privilege฀of฀traveling฀abroad฀or฀the฀means฀to฀do฀so.฀ Closely฀supervised฀visiting฀delegates฀from฀overseas฀were฀brought฀into฀ contact฀with฀carefully฀chosen฀local฀citizens.฀In฀the฀early฀years฀of฀the฀PRC,฀ contacts฀between฀Chinese฀academics฀and฀overseas฀colleagues฀were฀closely฀ monitored฀and฀controlled.฀Being฀close฀to฀Beijing฀brought฀the฀northern฀ institutions฀many฀more฀state-supervised฀contacts฀with฀Westerners฀in฀ those฀early฀years.฀In฀contrast,฀the฀south,฀such฀as฀Guangdong,฀has฀always฀ been฀in฀touch฀with฀the฀outside฀world฀through฀people’s฀personal฀contacts฀ in฀ Hong฀ Kong฀ and฀ other฀ overseas฀ communities฀ via฀ visits,฀ mail,฀ and฀ remittances. Before฀1980,฀most฀contacts฀were฀initiated฀by฀visitors฀from฀abroad,฀and฀ the฀visitors฀either฀came฀to฀China฀with฀a฀working฀proficiency฀in฀Chinese฀ or฀had฀state-provided฀interpreters.฀Foreigners฀either฀were฀not฀allowed฀to฀ conduct฀social฀studies฀in฀China฀or฀were฀closely฀supervised฀in฀their฀work฀ by฀state฀officials.฀Not฀until฀the฀1980s฀was฀fieldwork฀in฀China฀possible,฀ and฀even฀then,฀only฀researchers฀with฀good฀local฀contacts฀in฀their฀field฀ site฀could฀get฀their฀projects฀off฀the฀ground.฀Otherwise,฀they฀got฀bogged฀ down฀by฀excessive฀bureaucracy.฀Anthropologists฀who฀were฀interested฀ in฀China฀but฀could฀not฀do฀research฀there฀did฀the฀next฀best฀thing:฀they฀ carried฀ out฀ their฀ studies฀ in฀ Hong฀ Kong฀ (known฀ as฀ the฀ “gateway”฀ or฀ “window”฀into฀China)฀or฀in฀Taiwan.฀Hong฀Kong฀in฀particular฀attracted฀ many฀English-speaking฀visiting฀academics฀and฀became฀a฀central฀meeting฀ place฀for฀China฀experts.฀The฀Department฀of฀Anthropology฀at฀CUHK฀ became฀a฀strategic฀point฀of฀contact฀for฀visiting฀anthropologists฀from฀ the฀West,฀and฀it฀played฀an฀important฀role฀in฀bringing฀its฀counterparts฀ at฀Zhongshan฀University฀into฀these฀Western฀contacts฀throughout฀the฀ 1980s฀and฀1990s. How฀have฀these฀ contacts฀with฀the฀West฀affected฀the฀development฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ China?฀ In฀ many฀ ways฀ they฀ have฀ brought฀ about฀ significant฀internationalization—through฀faculty฀exchange฀(to฀North฀ America,฀Europe,฀and฀Hong฀Kong),฀conference฀attendance฀overseas,฀and฀ the฀successful฀placement฀of฀top฀Chinese฀students฀in฀graduate฀programs฀ overseas.฀But฀there฀are฀reasons฀for฀caution.฀These฀internationalization฀ processes฀have฀been฀limited,฀and฀their฀future฀effects฀on฀the฀discipline฀ are฀yet฀to฀be฀seen.฀Several฀important฀issues฀require฀closer฀attention฀in฀ our฀thinking฀about฀the฀future฀of฀anthropology฀in฀the฀China฀region.

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The฀first฀is฀the฀language฀factor.฀English฀is฀the฀international฀language฀ for฀trade,฀business,฀and฀academic฀interaction,฀but฀its฀dominance฀creates฀ problems฀ for฀ existing฀ faculty฀ members฀ in฀ China.฀ Those฀ of฀ the฀ pre– Cultural฀Revolution฀generation฀were฀trained฀in฀Russian,฀a฀state฀decision฀ that฀reflected฀China’s฀close฀alliance฀with฀the฀Soviet฀Union฀for฀a฀large฀ portion฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century.฀These฀people,฀now฀in฀their฀sixties฀and฀ seventies,฀are฀unlikely฀to฀learn฀another฀foreign฀language.฀The฀generation฀ of฀ scholars฀ who฀ entered฀ university฀ after฀ the฀ Cultural฀ Revolution฀ are฀ now฀the฀key฀members฀in฀the฀institutions.฀These฀scholars,฀in฀their฀forties฀ and฀ fifties,฀ suffered฀ an฀ extended฀ interruption฀ in฀ their฀ pre-university฀ education฀as฀a฀result฀of฀the฀ideological฀campaign฀that฀raged฀for฀nearly฀ ten฀years฀in฀1967–77.฀As฀a฀result,฀their฀proficiency฀in฀English฀and฀other฀ foreign฀languages฀tends฀to฀be฀weak฀if฀not฀poor.฀Chinese฀anthropologists฀ were฀mostly฀underprepared฀for฀the฀surge฀of฀connection฀with฀the฀West฀ in฀ the฀ 1990s,฀ yet฀ such฀ contacts฀ are฀ beneficial฀ in฀ broadening฀ their฀ worldviews฀ about฀ institutional฀ structure฀ and฀ pedagogical฀ traditions.฀ Another฀concern฀about฀English฀as฀a฀working฀language฀in฀anthropology฀ is฀the฀continuing฀dominance฀of฀English฀publications฀and฀textbooks฀in฀ the฀classroom. The฀second฀issue฀is฀whether฀Chinese฀anthropology฀will฀become฀increasingly฀“indigenized”฀instead฀of฀increasingly฀integrated฀into฀the฀world฀ system฀of฀anthropologies.฀A฀debate฀has฀arisen฀in฀East฀Asia฀around฀the฀ indigenization฀of฀knowledge฀in฀reaction฀to฀the฀hegemony฀over฀academic฀ excellence฀exerted฀by฀the฀English-speaking฀traditions฀(Kuwayama฀2004a)฀ and฀around฀indigenization฀as฀a฀means฀to฀strengthen฀the฀relevance฀of฀ anthropology฀for฀China฀and฀the฀Chinese฀people฀(Zhou฀2003:฀10–12).฀ Because฀of฀China’s฀closed-door฀policy฀from฀1949฀to฀1978,฀it฀has฀much฀ “catching฀up”฀to฀do฀in฀all฀areas฀of฀research,฀theory,฀and฀methods฀in฀ anthropology.฀Yet฀this฀catching฀up฀is฀hampered฀by฀several฀factors.฀One฀ is฀the฀linguistic฀issue฀I฀have฀already฀mentioned:฀many฀faculty฀members฀ and฀students฀lack฀the฀language฀proficiency฀to฀comprehend฀publications฀ in฀English.฀Another฀is฀the฀issue฀of฀access฀to฀printed฀material.฀Not฀only฀ is฀ it฀ difficult฀ and฀ costly฀ to฀ acquire฀ publications฀ printed฀ outside฀ of฀ China,฀but฀scholars฀within฀the฀country฀even฀have฀problems฀acquiring฀ publications฀printed฀outside฀their฀home฀institution฀or฀city,฀owing฀to฀ the฀nature฀of฀distribution฀networks. Yet฀another฀factor฀affecting฀China’s฀“catching฀up”฀is฀national฀pride.฀ Why฀should฀the฀Chinese฀feel฀that฀they฀have฀to฀catch฀up?฀There฀are฀ many฀outstanding฀ethnologists฀in฀China฀doing฀excellent฀work฀in฀the฀ Chinese฀language;฀why฀should฀they฀have฀to฀look฀beyond฀their฀national฀ boundaries฀for฀excellence฀and฀acceptance?฀Unlike฀Japan,฀China฀does฀not฀ yet฀have฀the฀critical฀mass฀of฀scholars฀and฀students฀needed฀to฀support฀a฀

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self-contained฀arena฀of฀research฀and฀publications฀in฀its฀own฀language— but฀it฀has฀great฀potential฀to฀develop฀such฀a฀critical฀mass฀in฀the฀future.฀It฀ is฀too฀soon฀to฀tell฀whether฀China฀will฀opt฀for฀greater฀integration฀with฀the฀ international฀body฀of฀scholars฀in฀anthropology฀or฀whether฀it฀will฀turn฀ inward฀under฀a฀mandate฀of฀indigenization.฀At฀present,฀China’s฀attempt฀ to฀gain฀the฀right฀to฀host฀the฀sixteenth฀congress฀of฀the฀IUAES฀in฀2008฀is฀ a฀positive฀sign฀of฀a฀move฀toward฀greater฀international฀integration. A฀ third฀ issue฀ requiring฀ attention฀ as฀ we฀ think฀ about฀ the฀ future฀ of฀ anthropology฀in฀China฀is฀that฀of฀brain฀drain.฀There฀is฀a฀great฀deal฀of฀ optimism฀ in฀ the฀ country฀ about฀ the฀ current฀ generation฀ of฀ students,฀ who฀are฀receiving฀better฀language฀training฀to฀facilitate฀integration฀with฀ the฀international฀academic฀body.฀Some฀top฀students฀are฀being฀channeled฀into฀graduate฀programs฀in฀Europe,฀Australia,฀and฀North฀America.฀ Whether฀these฀young฀scholars฀will฀make฀a฀real฀impact฀on฀the฀future฀of฀ anthropology฀in฀China฀depends฀on฀several฀things.฀For฀one,฀will฀they฀ return฀to฀work฀in฀China฀after฀their฀training฀overseas?฀Brain฀drain฀is฀a฀ reality,฀and฀the฀Chinese฀government฀has฀formulated฀incentive฀packages฀ to฀attract฀overseas฀Chinese฀to฀return฀to฀China,฀but฀with฀mixed฀success.฀ Moreover,฀ some฀ students฀ may฀ decide฀ to฀ switch฀ from฀ anthropology฀ to฀ another฀ field฀ for฀ better฀ employment฀ and฀ income฀ potential,฀ thus฀ diverting฀human฀resources฀from฀anthropology฀to฀other฀fields. A฀final฀issue฀is฀that฀of฀public฀awareness฀of฀anthropology฀in฀China.฀The฀ perception฀of฀anthropology฀as฀“lacking฀in฀utility”฀and฀less฀important฀ than฀many฀other฀subjects฀is฀an฀important฀obstacle฀to฀the฀future฀development฀of฀anthropology฀in฀Asia.฀There฀is฀some฀hope฀that฀the฀Chinese฀ government฀may฀elevate฀anthropology฀from฀the฀second฀tier฀to฀the฀first฀ in฀the฀academic฀ranking฀system.฀But฀even฀without฀such฀state-imposed฀ ranking,฀top฀students฀are฀not฀enrolling฀in฀anthropology.฀What฀can฀be฀ done฀to฀raise฀public฀awareness฀of฀the฀utility฀and฀worth฀of฀anthropology฀ in฀Asia?฀And฀can฀awareness฀be฀raised฀within฀a฀political฀context฀that฀ suppresses฀critical฀theory฀and฀analysis฀of฀the฀state?

Concluding฀Comments Anthropology฀in฀China฀has฀been฀shaped฀by฀many฀factors—geopolitical,฀ cultural,฀economic,฀and฀ideological—both฀historical฀and฀contemporary.฀ Anthropology฀in฀China฀is฀not฀a฀single฀unified฀field,฀nor฀is฀it฀now฀singularly฀dominated฀by฀American฀models฀or฀Chinese฀indigenization.฀The฀ mandate฀of฀nation฀building฀continues฀to฀be฀a฀guiding฀force฀in฀the฀development฀of฀research฀and฀teaching฀in฀Chinese฀anthropology,฀lending฀ strength฀to฀the฀already฀established฀ethnological฀studies฀(minsuxue)฀and฀

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the฀ emergent฀ field฀ of฀ rural฀ development฀ studies.฀ China’s฀ increasing฀ integration฀into฀the฀global฀economy฀is฀bound฀to฀strengthen฀and฀amplify฀ the฀exchange฀of฀ideas฀between฀Chinese฀anthropologists/ethnologists฀ and฀their฀counterparts฀around฀the฀world. The฀integration฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀generated฀in฀China฀ within฀ the฀ wider฀ global฀ system฀ of฀ knowledge฀ calls฀ attention฀ to฀ the฀ dominance฀of฀English฀as฀a฀universal฀language฀of฀communication฀among฀ scholars฀and฀businesspeople.฀Besides฀the฀language฀issue,฀there฀are฀issues฀ of฀funding,฀access฀to฀overseas฀education฀and฀contacts,฀state฀policies,฀ and฀economics.฀It฀is฀interesting฀that฀greater฀economic฀development฀and฀ globalization฀have฀not฀made฀anthropology฀more฀attractive฀to฀students฀ in฀greater฀China. The฀ future฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ China฀ cannot฀ be฀ assessed฀ easily฀ or฀ readily.฀The฀recent฀boost฀in฀government฀support฀for฀expanding฀anthropology฀in฀China฀is฀an฀encouraging฀sign฀that฀things฀are฀on฀the฀upswing฀ for฀ the฀ next฀ generations฀ of฀ anthropologists฀ there.฀ Will฀ they฀ take฀ on฀ anthropology?฀ What฀ kind฀ of฀ anthropologies฀ will฀ they฀ create?฀ What฀ shape฀will฀the฀integration฀of฀Chinese฀anthropologies฀within฀the฀world฀ system฀of฀knowledge฀take?฀We฀will฀have฀to฀wait฀for฀some฀years฀to฀learn฀ the฀answers฀to฀these฀questions.

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Mexican Anthropology’s Ongoing Search for Identity Esteban Krotz

F

rom฀a฀certain฀point฀of฀view,฀the฀history฀of฀anthropology฀seems฀to฀ be฀one฀of฀continual฀growth฀regarding฀the฀sociocultural฀phenomena,฀ areas,฀ and฀ configurations฀ under฀ study,฀ topics฀ and฀ forums฀ of฀ debate,฀ educational฀and฀research฀institutions,฀and฀analytical,฀methodological,฀ and฀technical฀perspectives.฀In฀geographical฀terms,฀the฀corresponding฀ concept฀would฀be฀that฀of฀extension:฀from฀a฀small฀nucleus฀of฀specialists฀ who฀ emerged฀ during฀ the฀ second฀ half฀ of฀ the฀ nineteenth฀ century฀ in฀ Europe—“a฀small฀peninsula฀of฀the฀Asian฀land฀mass”฀(Wolf฀1987:฀465)— and฀what฀was฀then฀its฀North฀American฀prolongation,฀anthropological฀ practice฀has฀expanded฀to฀the฀point฀that฀today฀it฀is฀present฀in฀many฀ parts฀of฀the฀world. Yet฀this฀manner฀of฀reconstructing฀the฀development฀of฀the฀discipline,฀ though฀in฀a฀certain฀sense฀justified,฀carries฀with฀it฀the฀danger฀of฀passing฀ over฀anthropology’s฀internal฀heterogeneity,฀its฀fractures฀and฀discontinuities,฀and฀of฀being฀unable฀to฀adequately฀take฀into฀account฀the฀emergence฀ of฀new฀situations. One฀such฀novelty฀of฀recent฀decades฀(despite฀having฀begun,฀in฀some฀ cases,฀ considerably฀ earlier)฀ is฀ the฀ increasingly฀ noticeable,฀ relatively฀ autonomous฀existence฀and฀reproduction฀of฀particular฀anthropological฀ traditions฀in฀many฀countries฀of฀“the฀South.”฀These฀regions฀were฀previously฀ considered฀ solely฀ or฀ almost฀ exclusively฀ sites฀ for฀ the฀ conduct฀ of฀anthropological฀research฀generated฀in฀and฀directed฀by฀institutions฀ located฀in฀the฀founding฀countries฀of฀the฀discipline. One฀of฀the฀first฀important฀reflections฀on฀this฀topic฀took฀place฀during฀a฀ Wenner-Gren฀symposium฀held฀in฀1978,฀called฀“Indigenous฀Anthropology฀

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in฀Non-Western฀Countries”฀(Fahim฀1982).฀As฀Talal฀Asad฀pointed฀out฀ in฀his฀contribution฀to฀the฀symposium฀volume,฀the฀existence฀of฀“nonWestern”฀ anthropologists,฀ as฀ they฀ were฀ called฀ then,฀ is฀ not฀ the฀ same฀ thing฀as฀the฀existence฀of฀non-Western฀anthropologies฀(Asad฀1982:฀284).฀ And฀ indeed,฀ the฀ character฀ and฀ properties฀ of฀ the฀ so-called฀ peripheral฀ anthropologies,฀or฀anthropologies฀of฀the฀South฀(Krotz฀1997),฀are฀yet฀ to฀be฀defined.1฀Yet฀how฀could฀it฀be฀supposed฀that฀the฀anthropological฀ discipline,฀created฀originally฀to฀study฀“others,”฀who฀were฀so฀in฀relation฀ to฀the฀industrialized,฀urbanized,฀and฀literate฀European฀world฀of฀the฀nineteenth฀century,฀has฀not฀changed฀in฀some฀way฀after฀taking฀root,฀various฀ generations฀later,฀in฀precisely฀those฀different฀cultures฀and฀upon฀being฀ utilized฀generally,฀though฀not฀always,฀for฀the฀study฀of฀those฀cultures’฀ own฀internal฀“others”? This฀ chapter฀ is฀ meant฀ as฀ a฀ contribution฀ to฀ the฀ clarification฀ of฀ the฀ anthropologies฀of฀the฀South฀through฀the฀analysis฀of฀one฀of฀them,฀that฀ of฀Mexico.฀By฀this฀means,฀I฀attempt฀to฀identify฀features฀that฀might฀be฀ used฀ in฀ elaborating฀ a฀ new฀ perspective฀ on฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ “global฀ discourse฀that฀entails฀an฀ensemble฀of฀paradigms,฀styles,฀practices฀and฀ forms฀of฀political฀consciousness”฀(Ribeiro฀and฀Escobar฀2003:฀2). To฀be฀able฀to฀adequately฀understand฀Mexican฀anthropology,฀it฀is฀necessary฀to฀examine฀the฀particularities฀of฀the฀national฀sociopolitical฀system฀ of฀which฀it฀forms฀a฀part.฀The฀identity฀of฀this฀scientific฀discipline฀and฀ professional฀practice฀in฀Mexico฀is฀profoundly฀rooted฀in฀the฀Mexican฀ nation’s฀own฀search฀for฀identity.฀For฀these฀reasons,฀I฀first฀discuss฀the฀ relationship฀between฀the฀nation-state฀and฀anthropology฀as฀one฀of฀the฀ keys฀for฀understanding฀the฀makeup฀of฀an฀anthropological฀tradition,฀ and฀I฀outline฀some฀of฀the฀principal฀features฀of฀contemporary฀Mexican฀ society฀and฀its฀anthropology.฀In฀the฀next฀two฀sections,฀I฀reconstruct฀ the฀historical฀development฀of฀Mexican฀anthropology,฀emphasizing฀its฀ treatment฀of฀indigenous฀peoples฀as฀its฀“internal฀others”฀and฀the฀dialectic฀ between฀class฀and฀culture,฀ending฀with฀a฀brief฀characterization฀of฀the฀ most฀recent฀decade.฀In฀the฀final฀section,฀I฀describe฀a฀series฀of฀traits฀and฀ intrinsic฀ tensions฀ in฀ Mexican฀ anthropology฀ today฀ that฀ might฀ aid฀ in฀ comparing฀that฀anthropology฀with฀others฀of฀the฀South฀and฀North.2

The฀Constituting฀Factors฀of฀Anthropological฀ Knowledge฀in฀Mexico Although฀ the฀ origins฀ of฀ the฀ present฀ phase฀ of฀ globalization฀ can฀ be฀ found฀in฀the฀sixteenth฀century,฀and฀although฀the฀first฀anthropological฀ scientists฀constituted฀themselves฀as฀an฀international฀(North฀Atlantic)฀

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community฀in฀the฀second฀half฀of฀the฀nineteenth฀century,฀the฀nationstate฀remains฀the฀most฀important฀organizer฀of฀anthropological฀activity.฀ The฀nuances฀of฀the฀nation-state’s฀role฀depend฀on฀whether฀it฀belongs฀to฀ the฀group฀of฀central฀or฀peripheral฀countries฀and฀on฀its฀general฀historical,฀ cultural,฀and฀linguistic฀background.฀To฀the฀degree฀that฀the฀nation-state,฀ with฀its฀peculiar฀tendency฀toward฀homogenizing฀key฀aspects฀of฀life,฀also฀ directs฀the฀legitimation฀of฀the฀social฀order฀in฀force,฀it฀sets฀the฀limits฀ for,฀and฀on฀occasion฀directly฀intervenes฀in,฀the฀generation฀of฀so-called฀ scientific฀knowledge. Scientific฀knowledge฀cannot฀be฀reduced฀to฀a฀set฀of฀declarations฀constructed฀according฀to฀certain฀methodological฀prescriptions.฀Rather,฀it฀is฀ a฀result฀of฀the฀actions฀of฀concrete฀individuals฀and฀groups.฀Scientists฀are฀ immersed฀in฀shifting฀networks฀of฀relationships—among฀institutions,฀ among฀colleagues,฀with฀funding฀sources,฀with฀transmitters฀of฀knowledge,฀ and฀with฀actual฀or฀potential฀users฀of฀the฀results฀of฀scientific฀investigations.฀ These฀networks,฀as฀well฀as฀the฀ever-changing฀sociopolitical฀conditions฀ that฀frame฀them,฀are฀not฀exterior฀to฀scientific฀knowledge฀but฀rather฀are฀ factors฀that฀help฀constitute฀it.3 A฀scientific฀tradition฀or฀(sub)discipline฀defines฀itself฀principally฀through฀ a฀specific฀question฀about฀reality,฀thereby฀“grasping”฀reality฀in฀a฀certain฀ way.฀In฀the฀case฀of฀anthropology,฀this฀perspective฀is฀that฀of฀alterity:฀any฀ particular฀phenomenon฀is฀considered฀and฀studied฀as฀an฀integral฀part฀of฀ the฀sociocultural฀multiverse.4฀Yet฀because฀this฀perspective฀must฀always฀ be฀ elaborated฀ from฀ the฀ experience฀ of฀ a฀ unique,฀ concrete,฀ historical฀ reality,฀and฀because฀the฀basis฀of฀scientific฀knowledge฀is฀precisely฀the฀ reality฀under฀observation,฀that฀particular฀reality฀not฀only฀forms฀part฀ of฀ the฀ generation฀ of฀ knowledge฀ but฀ also฀ contributes฀ to฀ shaping฀ the฀ anthropological฀tradition฀or฀subdiscipline฀in฀question.5 The฀empirical฀field฀in฀which฀all฀social฀sciences฀develop฀is฀constantly฀ changing.฀In฀anthropology,฀this฀experience฀is฀so฀strong฀that฀it฀has฀become฀ one฀of฀the฀causes฀of฀the฀discipline’s฀cyclical฀“crises”:฀every฀so฀often,฀ anthropology’s฀practitioners฀fear฀the฀imminent฀disappearance฀of฀the฀ phenomena฀their฀ancestors฀and฀classic฀authors฀dedicated฀themselves฀to฀ understanding.฀But฀it฀must฀be฀taken฀into฀account฀that฀the฀sociocultural฀ multiverse฀in฀which฀phenomena฀appear฀and฀disappear฀is,฀if฀not฀created฀ by,฀ then฀ at฀ least฀ always฀ shaped฀ by฀ the฀ state฀ in฀ whose฀ territory฀ it฀ is฀ located.฀To฀make฀this฀statement฀is฀not฀to฀assign฀to฀the฀state฀its฀own฀ essence.฀ Rather,฀ the฀ state฀ should฀ be฀ understood฀ as฀ a฀ mechanism฀ for฀ “configuring”฀or฀“filtering”฀situations฀and,฀especially,฀“social฀problems.”฀ Sometimes฀ the฀ state฀ itself฀ generates฀ these฀ situations฀ and฀ problems;฀ sometimes฀it฀only฀ranks฀them,฀makes฀them฀explicit,฀or฀tries฀to฀disperse฀

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them,฀ hide฀ them,฀ play฀ them฀ down,฀ attend฀ to฀ them,฀ or฀ make฀ them฀ present฀in฀so-called฀public฀opinion,฀in฀expert฀circles,฀and฀in฀the฀actions฀ of฀its฀apparatuses.฀Thus,฀the฀topics฀(and฀the฀perception฀of฀those฀topics)฀ that฀anthropologists฀of฀a฀particular฀country฀take฀on฀as฀subjects฀of฀study฀ (and฀to฀whose฀modification฀they฀sometimes฀try฀to฀contribute฀using฀the฀ knowledge฀they฀generate฀about฀them)฀are฀established฀and฀sustained฀by฀ the฀concrete฀actions฀of฀state฀institutions. All฀of฀the฀foregoing฀suggests฀that฀in฀order฀to฀understand฀the฀configuration฀ of฀ any฀ particular฀ anthropological฀ tradition,฀ one฀ must฀ begin฀ by฀considering฀the฀field฀of฀sociopolitical฀forces฀and฀rules฀in฀which฀the฀ daily฀activities฀of฀the฀producers,฀communicators,฀and฀users฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀take฀place.฀This฀field฀is฀not฀merely฀the฀“context”฀ for฀the฀generation฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀but฀also฀another฀of฀ its฀dimensions. For฀the฀preceding฀reasons,฀it฀is฀necessary฀to฀briefly฀describe฀the฀nationstate฀of฀Mexico฀in฀order฀to฀understand฀its฀anthropology฀as฀a฀generator฀ of฀knowledge฀in฀the฀worldwide฀sociocultural฀mosaic.฀Mexico,฀a฀country฀ of฀ 2฀ million฀ square฀ kilometers,฀ with฀ nearly฀ 100฀ million฀ inhabitants฀ and฀several฀million฀more฀nationals฀living฀in฀the฀United฀States,6฀is฀characterized฀ by฀ extreme฀ social฀ inequality.฀ In฀ its฀ economy,฀ which฀ ranks฀ among฀the฀top฀ten฀in฀the฀world,฀the฀legal฀minimum฀family฀wage฀in฀ 2003฀was฀equal฀to฀four฀US฀dollars฀per฀day. Although฀ Mexico฀ is฀ predominantly฀ mestizo฀ demographically฀ and฀ culturally,฀ a฀ significant฀ percentage฀ of฀ its฀ population฀ belongs฀ to฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ sixty-two฀ native฀ ethnolinguistic฀ groups฀ that฀ live฀ in฀ Mexican฀ territory.฀Of฀the฀approximately฀10฀million฀inhabitants฀considered฀by฀ the฀census฀to฀be฀indigenous,฀2฀million฀live฀in฀large฀cities;฀the฀rest฀live฀ primarily฀in฀the฀rural฀zones฀of฀the฀center฀and฀south฀of฀the฀country,฀under฀ conditions—according฀to฀nearly฀every฀social฀indicator—that฀place฀them฀ at฀the฀base฀of฀the฀social฀pyramid. The฀third฀important฀characteristic฀of฀the฀country฀is฀its฀proximity฀to฀ the฀world’s฀principal฀superpower,฀which฀traditionally฀has฀exercised฀an฀ enormous฀influence฀over฀Mexico,฀including฀its฀cultural฀environment.฀ For฀example,฀a฀large฀number฀of฀the฀Mexican฀anthropologists฀who฀have฀ completed฀academic฀degrees฀outside฀Mexico,฀as฀well฀as฀those฀who฀have฀ taken฀sabbaticals฀or฀finished฀postdoctoral฀degrees,฀have฀done฀so฀in฀the฀ United฀States.฀Until฀the฀recent฀past,฀there฀existed฀among฀the฀majority฀ of฀ intellectuals฀ and฀ in฀ some฀ spheres฀ of฀ the฀ state฀ apparatus฀ a฀ certain฀ nationalistic฀tendency,฀which฀was฀most฀clearly฀expressed฀in฀Mexico’s฀ relatively฀independent฀foreign฀policy฀(Mexico฀supported฀Cuba฀and฀the฀ Nicaraguan฀sandinistas฀and฀acted฀as฀mediator฀in฀the฀Salvadoran฀and฀

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Guatemalan฀civil฀wars).฀However,฀neither฀the฀predominant฀consumption฀patterns฀nor฀many฀other฀aspects฀of฀daily฀life฀in฀Mexico฀escape฀the฀ molding฀ influence฀ of฀ the฀ social฀ and฀ cultural฀ norms฀ generated฀ in฀ its฀ powerful฀northern฀neighbor. The฀social฀and฀political฀consequences฀of฀the฀Mexican฀Revolution฀of฀ 1910฀make฀up฀a฀fourth฀relevant฀feature.฀Not฀only฀was฀the฀1917฀Constitution฀one฀of฀the฀most฀progressive฀in฀the฀world฀when฀it฀was฀created,฀ but฀it฀also฀effectively฀established,฀across฀more฀than฀seven฀decades฀and฀in฀ spite฀of฀many฀manipulations฀and฀twists,฀an฀important฀union฀movement฀ and,฀above฀all,฀educational฀and฀agricultural฀policies฀unique฀in฀Latin฀ America. Finally,฀during฀the฀twentieth฀century฀Mexico฀remained฀free฀of฀“national฀ security”฀governments.฀This฀marked฀the฀country฀with฀a฀distinctive฀intellectual,฀political,฀scientific,฀and฀academic฀lifestyle฀and฀fostered,฀especially฀ during฀the฀twenty฀most฀intense฀years฀of฀dictatorship฀in฀Central฀and฀ South฀America,฀the฀arrival฀en฀masse฀of฀social฀scientists฀from฀other฀Latin฀ American฀countries.฀Some฀of฀them฀were฀even฀permanently฀incorporated฀ into฀the฀Mexican฀academic฀community. Today,฀Mexican฀anthropology฀constitutes฀a฀large,฀well-consolidated฀ disciplinary฀ and฀ professional฀ field,฀ although฀ its฀ visibility฀ in฀ public฀ opinion฀ and฀ policy฀ has฀ varied฀ over฀ time.฀ The฀ Instituto฀ Nacional฀ de฀ Antropología฀e฀Historia฀(National฀Institute฀of฀Anthropology฀and฀History,฀ or฀ INAH)฀ and,฀ to฀ a฀ lesser฀ degree,฀ the฀ National฀ Commission฀ for฀ the฀ Development฀of฀the฀Indigenous฀Peoples,฀or฀CDI฀(until฀2003฀called฀the฀ National฀Indigenous฀Institute,฀or฀INI),฀have฀always฀played฀important฀ roles฀in฀this฀field.฀INAH฀controls฀almost฀all฀the฀archaeology฀in฀Mexico,฀ administers฀ the฀ majority฀ of฀ history฀ and฀ ethnology฀ museums,฀ and฀ is฀ the฀source฀of฀employment฀for฀almost฀every฀archaeologist฀and฀many฀ other฀ anthropologists.฀ Among฀ the฀ employees฀ of฀ CDI,฀ professional฀ anthropologists฀are฀a฀minority. Two฀sets฀of฀statistics฀illustrate฀the฀current฀situation.฀The฀first฀is฀that฀ Mexico฀ currently฀ has฀ nineteen฀ programs฀ offering฀ bachelor’s฀ degrees฀ in฀anthropology,฀eighteen฀offering฀master’s฀degrees,฀and฀nine฀offering฀ doctorates,฀to฀which฀can฀be฀added฀various฀graduate฀programs฀that฀are฀ not฀formally฀anthropology฀programs฀but฀which฀regularly฀allow฀students฀ to฀write฀theses฀of฀an฀anthropological฀character.฀Although฀the฀majority฀ of฀these฀programs฀are฀concentrated฀in฀the฀country’s฀capital,฀one-third฀ of฀the฀thirty-two฀federal฀entities฀have฀at฀least฀one฀academic฀program,฀ and฀ several฀ more฀ are฀ in฀ preparation.฀ Between฀ 1998฀ and฀ 2000,฀ 672฀ bachelor’s฀(licenciatura)฀degrees,฀235฀master’s฀degrees,฀and฀98฀doctorates฀ were฀awarded฀in฀anthropology.฀The฀second฀is฀that฀in฀2001,฀twenty-nine฀

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scientific฀and฀general฀anthropological฀journals฀and฀annuals฀were฀being฀ published฀in฀Mexico,฀along฀with฀a฀dozen฀specialized฀bulletins฀belonging฀ to฀the฀different฀branches฀of฀anthropology.7฀In฀addition,฀anthropologists฀ in฀Mexico฀write฀regularly฀in฀a฀good฀number฀of฀multidisciplinary฀and฀ other฀ social฀ science฀ journals,฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ in฀ cultural฀ supplements฀ and฀ even฀newspapers.

The฀Conception฀and฀Treatment฀of฀Internal฀“Others” Although฀modern,฀scientific฀Mexican฀anthropology฀has฀its฀roots฀in฀the฀ political฀and฀social฀reordering฀provoked฀by฀the฀Mexican฀Revolution฀of฀ 1910,฀it฀also฀forms฀yet฀another฀link฀in฀a฀tradition฀of฀thought฀that฀began฀ with฀ the฀ Iberian฀ invasion—namely,฀ reflection฀ on฀ the฀ confrontation฀ of฀the฀civilizations฀involved฀in฀that฀event.8฀The฀landmark฀dispute฀in฀ the฀sixteenth฀and฀seventeenth฀centuries฀over฀the฀human฀status฀of฀the฀ inhabitants฀ of฀ the฀ Americas฀ and฀ the฀ consequent฀ obligations฀ of฀ the฀ colonial฀powers฀toward฀those฀inhabitants฀was฀in฀a฀sense฀the฀starting฀ point฀for฀Mexican฀anthropology฀in฀terms฀of฀its฀principal฀others,฀the฀ indigenous฀peoples.9฀These฀peoples฀would฀live฀out฀the฀centuries฀following฀ the฀ invasion฀ separated฀ from฀ the฀ Spaniards฀ and฀ Creoles฀ in฀ their฀ “Indian฀republics.”฀But฀in฀numerous฀social฀interstices,฀above฀all฀urban฀ ones,฀a฀demographic฀sector฀later฀called฀mestizo฀grew฀larger฀and฀larger,฀ augmented฀by฀the฀descendants฀of฀enslaved฀Africans. The฀liberal฀discourse฀of฀independent฀Mexico฀did฀not฀distinguish฀ among฀citizens฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀their฀ethnic฀roots.฀It฀did,฀however,฀legitimate฀ the฀ intent—only฀ partially฀ successful—of฀ dissolving฀ the฀ geoeconomic฀bases฀of฀the฀indigenous฀societies฀through฀the฀expropriation฀ of฀ their฀ land.฀ After฀ the฀ colonial฀ power฀ had฀ almost฀ totally฀ destroyed฀ all฀previously฀existing฀forms฀of฀sociopolitical฀organization,฀that฀land฀ was฀ possessed฀ and฀ worked฀ under฀ communal฀ forms฀ of฀ organization.฀ For฀this฀reason,฀and฀under฀the฀influence฀of฀positivist฀evolutionism,฀the฀ intellectual฀precursors฀of฀the฀Mexican฀Revolution฀generally฀subsumed฀ the฀indigenous฀population฀in฀the฀“rural฀problem”฀of฀the฀country,฀which฀ they฀proposed฀to฀resolve฀through฀agrarian฀reform฀and฀the฀industrialization฀of฀the฀countryside. The฀Constitution฀that฀emanated฀from฀the฀Revolution,฀with฀its฀extraordinary฀(for฀that฀period)฀individual฀guarantees฀and฀social฀rights,฀made฀ no฀mention฀of฀the฀indigenous฀population.฀Yet฀two฀of฀its฀most฀significant฀ articles,฀ those฀ referring฀ to฀ the฀ ownership฀ of฀ land฀ and฀ to฀ education,฀ became฀the฀two฀principal฀axes฀around฀which฀indigenous฀activity฀would฀ spin.฀To฀those฀axes—because฀of฀widespread฀ignorance฀about฀the฀indigenous฀population—intense฀research฀was฀added฀as฀a฀third.

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An฀emblematic฀initiative฀in฀this฀regard฀was฀the฀action-research฀project฀ on฀ the฀ population฀ of฀ the฀ Teotihuacán฀ Valley,฀ the฀ primary฀ results฀ of฀ which฀provided฀the฀first฀Mexican฀anthropologist,฀Manuel฀Gamio,฀with฀ a฀doctorate฀in฀1921.฀It฀was฀a฀project฀of฀regional฀orientation฀considered฀ to฀be฀a฀pilot,฀and฀it฀consisted฀of฀first฀getting฀to฀know฀in฀detail฀and฀later฀ improving฀the฀situation฀of฀the฀highly฀indigenous฀population.฀A฀recent฀ retrospective฀described฀this฀sort฀of฀project฀as฀follows: Anthropology฀in฀Mexico฀was฀born,฀really,฀from฀a฀very฀vivid,฀lacerating฀ sociocultural฀reality฀that฀still฀exists฀today.฀From฀this฀reality฀comes฀the฀ application฀ of฀ the฀ integral฀ method,฀ which฀ contemplates฀ the฀ study฀ of฀ the฀ population฀ in฀ its฀ three฀ stages฀ of฀ development—pre-Hispanic,฀ colonial,฀and฀modern—to฀learn฀its฀historical฀origins฀and฀thereby฀to฀be฀ in฀a฀condition฀to฀help฀the฀population.฀In฀that฀way,฀in฀contrast฀to฀other฀ countries฀where฀anthropology฀or฀one฀of฀its฀branches฀served฀for฀colonial฀ ends,฀in฀Mexico฀it฀appears฀as฀a฀practice฀for฀the฀good฀of฀marginalized฀and฀ traditionally฀exploited฀groups.฀(Matos฀Moctezuma฀2001:฀39)

Manuel฀Gamio฀had฀been฀a฀student฀of฀Franz฀Boas’s,฀who฀had฀played฀ a฀ decisive฀ role฀ in฀ the฀ initial฀ stages฀ of฀ the฀ International฀ School฀ of฀ Archaeology฀and฀American฀Ethnology฀in฀Mexico฀City,฀which฀was฀interrupted฀by฀the฀events฀of฀the฀Revolution.฀Later฀Gamio฀became฀the฀first฀ head฀of฀the฀Department฀of฀Archaeology฀and฀Ethnography฀(created฀in฀ 1917),฀which฀was฀not฀a฀branch฀of฀the฀education฀sector฀but฀rather฀formed฀ part฀of฀the฀Secretariat฀of฀Agriculture฀and฀Development. Indigenism฀expanded฀during฀the฀popular,฀nationalist฀presidency฀of฀ Lázaro฀Cárdenas฀(1934–40),฀who฀laid฀the฀foundations฀for฀the฀development฀of฀anthropology฀in฀the฀country.฀In฀1939฀he฀founded฀INAH,฀which,฀ besides฀ being฀ responsible฀ for฀ all฀ archaeological฀ sites฀ in฀ Mexico,฀ has฀ centers฀of฀administration฀and฀investigation฀throughout฀the฀country฀and฀ carries฀out฀important฀editorial฀activities.฀During฀the฀Cárdenas฀administration,฀the฀First฀Inter-American฀Indian฀Conference฀took฀place฀in฀1940฀ in฀Pátzcuaro,฀Mexico,฀as฀a฀result฀of฀which฀two฀important฀institutions฀ were฀established.฀The฀first฀was฀the฀Inter-American฀Indian฀Institute—an฀ institution฀of฀the฀Organization฀of฀American฀States฀and฀editor฀of฀one฀of฀ the฀oldest฀social฀science฀journals฀in฀Latin฀America,฀América฀Indígena— which฀was฀founded฀during฀the฀conference฀but฀really฀began฀to฀operate฀in฀ 1942฀in฀Mexico฀City.฀The฀second฀was฀the฀National฀Indigenist฀Institute,฀ established฀in฀1948.฀The฀first฀academic฀department฀of฀anthropology฀ was฀created฀as฀early฀as฀1938;10฀it฀was฀incorporated฀into฀INAH฀in฀1942฀ as฀the฀National฀School฀of฀Anthropology฀and฀History฀(ENAH).฀To฀this฀

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day฀it฀is฀the฀most฀important฀center฀for฀anthropological฀training฀in฀Latin฀ America.฀It฀offers,฀at฀the฀levels฀of฀licenciatura,฀master’s,฀and฀doctoral฀ degrees,฀all฀the฀subdisciplines฀of฀social฀anthropology,฀ethnology,฀physical฀ anthropology,฀linguistics,฀ethnohistory,฀history,฀and฀archaeology. This฀anthropological฀science฀was฀designed฀to฀occupy฀itself฀with฀important฀tasks฀for฀the฀country,฀above฀all฀with฀studying฀and฀conserving฀ Mexico’s฀ pre-Hispanic฀ and฀ colonial฀ patrimony฀ and฀ with฀ examining฀ and฀ attending฀ to฀ the฀ precarious฀ situation฀ of฀ the฀ indigenous฀ groups.฀ Whereas฀ those฀ who฀ addressed฀ the฀ first฀ of฀ these฀ tasks฀ did฀ so฀ largely฀ on฀ a฀ technical฀ level,฀ had฀ no฀ great฀ theoretical฀ pretensions,฀ and฀ were฀ principally฀interested฀in฀shaping฀a฀panorama฀of฀ancient฀history,฀those฀ who฀undertook฀the฀second฀task฀widely฀assumed฀the฀theoretical฀orientation฀and฀methodology฀of฀so-called฀North฀American฀culturalism.฀That฀ approach฀was฀supported฀through฀the฀translation฀of฀its฀principal฀works฀at฀ a฀government฀publishing฀house฀and฀through฀diverse฀research฀programs฀ directed฀by฀North฀American฀anthropologists. The฀emblematic฀figure฀of฀the฀epoch฀is฀Gonzalo฀Aguirre฀Beltrán฀(1908– 96),฀a฀medical฀doctor฀turned฀ethnohistorian฀and฀social฀anthropologist,฀ who฀during฀his฀long฀life฀combined฀directorial฀positions฀in฀indigenous฀ activity฀with฀prolific฀writing฀on฀the฀theoretical฀and฀practical฀aspects฀of฀ indigenism.฀According฀to฀his฀definition,฀indigenism฀was฀“not฀policy฀ formulated฀by฀Indians฀for฀the฀solution฀of฀their฀own฀problems฀but฀rather฀ that฀ of฀ non-Indians฀ targeting฀ the฀ heterogeneous฀ ethnic฀ groups฀ who฀ receive฀the฀general฀distinction฀of฀indigenous”฀(Aguirre฀1992b฀[1967]:฀ 24).฀In฀contrast฀to฀the฀orientations฀of฀past฀generations,฀which฀Aguirre฀ rejected฀as฀“assimilationist”฀or฀“incorporationist”฀and฀accused฀of฀lacking฀ respect฀for฀indigenous฀cultures฀as฀one฀of฀the฀roots฀of฀the฀modern฀Mexican฀ nation,฀he฀defined฀his฀position฀as฀“integrationist,”฀in฀the฀sense฀of฀an฀ “induced฀acculturation”฀(1992a฀[1957]:฀43).฀Consequently,฀it฀was฀an฀ indigenism฀that฀adapted฀the฀“ideology฀of฀the฀mestizo฀[as]฀the฀method฀ and฀technique฀of฀national฀unification”฀(1992a฀[1957]:฀119).฀With฀this฀ goal,฀many฀“indigenist฀coordination฀centers”฀were฀founded.฀Located฀in฀ the฀ladino฀urban฀nuclei฀of฀the฀so-called฀intercultural฀regions,฀they฀were฀ to฀foment฀the฀slow฀incorporation฀of฀the฀indigenous฀population฀into฀ national฀culture,฀principally฀through฀government฀actions฀in฀primary฀ education,฀ health,฀ promotion฀ of฀ economic฀ and฀ communicational฀ activities,฀and฀legal฀counsel฀in฀agrarian฀issues.฀Anthropological฀research฀ would฀precede฀the฀establishment฀of฀such฀centers฀and฀would฀accompany฀ the฀development฀of฀their฀activities. Yet฀at฀almost฀the฀same฀time฀this฀original฀version฀of฀applied฀anthropology,฀ which฀ practically฀ defined฀ Mexican฀ anthropology,฀ reached฀

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its฀culmination฀during฀the฀federal฀administration฀of฀1970–76฀(when฀ Aguirre฀worked฀simultaneously฀as฀director฀of฀INI฀and฀as฀a฀subsecretary฀ of฀the฀Secretary฀of฀Education),฀critiques฀of฀this฀form฀of฀anthropology฀ were฀also฀becoming฀stronger.฀These฀critiques฀incorporated฀the฀dependency฀ theories฀ then฀ emerging฀ in฀ Latin฀ America,฀ the฀ rejection฀ of฀ US฀ imperialism,฀ dissatisfaction฀ with฀ explanations฀ of฀ social฀ reality฀ that฀ derived฀from฀the฀so-called฀superstructure,฀the฀postulate฀that฀any฀local฀ phenomenon฀must฀be฀understood฀in฀the฀frame฀of฀global฀processes฀of฀ exploitation฀ and฀ domination฀ of฀ the฀ Third฀ World,฀ and฀ the฀ hope฀ for฀ a฀near฀and฀radical฀transformation฀of฀Mexico’s฀blatantly฀unjust฀social฀ structures.฀Marxism฀became฀the฀articulating฀axis฀of฀what฀was฀frequently฀ called฀“critical฀anthropology”฀or฀“engaged฀anthropology,”฀which฀in฀a฀ short฀time฀became฀hegemonic฀in฀the฀country.฀In฀an฀early฀manifesto,฀indigenism฀was฀denounced฀as฀an฀instrument฀of฀an฀unacceptable฀“Westernization฀and฀modernization฀of฀the฀indigenous”฀(Nolasco฀1970:฀85),฀the฀ goal฀of฀which฀was฀to฀“eradicate฀the฀ethnic฀personality฀of฀the฀Indian”฀ (Bonfil฀ 1970:฀ 44).฀ Against฀ this,฀ the฀ right฀ to฀ “self-determination”฀ for฀ indigenous฀groups฀and฀the฀construction฀of฀a฀“pluri-cultural฀state”฀was฀ demanded฀(Bonfil฀1970:฀56).฀Others฀later฀rejected฀indigenism฀as฀part฀of฀ the฀“capitalist฀project฀of฀dissolution฀of฀non-capitalist฀societies”฀(DiazPolanco฀1981฀[1979]:฀37). The฀development฀of฀this฀critique฀(full฀of฀internal฀contradictions฀as฀฀ it฀was)฀and฀the฀search฀for฀alternative฀anthropologies฀were฀consolidated฀ during฀a฀governmental฀period฀of฀nationalist฀and฀Third-Worldist฀tendencies฀ and฀ the฀ intent,฀ manifested฀ largely฀ in฀ a฀ new฀ agrarian฀ law,฀ of฀ reviving฀the฀revolutionary฀tradition฀dulled฀by฀the฀regimes฀following฀ that฀ of฀ Cárdenas.฀ As฀ a฀ result฀ of฀ all฀ this,฀ the฀ indigenous฀ population฀ mostly฀ceased฀to฀be฀a฀subject฀of฀study.฀When฀it฀was฀studied,฀it฀was฀seen฀ almost฀ exclusively฀ from฀ the฀ angle฀ of฀ its฀ belonging฀ to฀ the฀ peasantry,฀ with฀which฀it฀seemed฀to฀share฀domestic฀and฀communal฀organization,฀ submission฀to฀exploitation฀and฀domination,฀and฀the฀occasional฀protest.฀ Simultaneously,฀the฀superstuctural฀sphere—customs฀and฀language,฀religion฀and฀cosmovision—which฀traditionally฀had฀occupied฀a฀central฀ place฀in฀anthropological฀work,฀was฀reduced฀to฀the฀epiphenomena฀of฀ ideology฀ and฀ alienation.฀ And฀ at฀ nearly฀ the฀ same฀ time,฀ the฀ dizzying฀ urbanization฀ that฀ over฀ the฀ course฀ of฀ the฀ 1970s฀ converted฀ Mexico,฀ in฀ statistical฀ terms,฀ into฀ a฀ predominantly฀ urban฀ country฀ inspired฀ a฀ growing฀number฀of฀anthropologists฀to฀enter฀the฀fields฀of฀urban฀and฀ labor฀anthropology.฀They฀brought฀with฀them฀the฀hope฀of฀finding฀in฀ the฀mobilizations฀of฀these฀“new”฀social฀subjects฀the฀beginning฀of฀the฀ longed-for฀social฀transformation,฀and฀they฀shared฀a฀conviction฀that฀they฀ could฀contribute,฀with฀their฀scientific฀study,฀to฀that฀transformation.

96฀

Esteban Krotz

But฀even฀after฀Aguirre฀left฀the฀indigenist฀organizations,฀his฀conception฀ prevailed฀inside฀them,฀although฀they฀were฀later฀assimilated฀into฀the฀ fight฀against฀what฀was฀first฀called฀“marginalization”฀and฀later฀“poverty.”฀ These฀phenomena฀were฀doubtless฀exacerbated฀throughout฀the฀country฀ by฀the฀neoliberal฀policies฀instrumented฀after฀the฀explosion฀of฀Mexico’s฀ foreign฀debt฀in฀1982. In฀México฀profundo฀(Deep฀Mexico;฀1996฀[1987]),฀Guillermo฀Bonfil฀characterized฀the฀history฀of฀Mexico฀since฀the฀arrival฀of฀the฀Europeans฀as฀an฀ unending฀battle฀between฀the฀Western฀and฀Mesoamerican฀civilizations฀ and฀diagnosed฀the฀potential฀for฀updating฀the฀latter฀civilizations.฀For฀the฀ anthropological฀community,฀the฀book฀was฀a฀call฀to฀attention฀for฀having฀ forgotten฀the฀indigenous฀population.฀It฀reminded฀anthropologists฀that฀ indigenous฀people฀had฀to฀be฀taken฀into฀account฀if฀they฀were฀to฀adequately฀ understand฀the฀complexity฀of฀Mexican฀society฀and฀to฀reconstruct฀it฀on฀ real฀bases฀of฀equality฀and฀freedom.฀Yet฀this,฀Mexican฀anthropology’s฀ most฀successful฀book,฀was฀unable฀to฀provoke฀a฀new฀indigenist฀policy,฀ although฀it฀was฀a฀key฀point฀of฀reference฀in฀a฀brief฀interlude฀in฀which฀ anthropologists฀attempted฀to฀promote฀a฀more฀participatory฀indigenism.฀ It฀did฀contribute,฀in฀contrast,฀to฀the฀strengthening฀of฀Indianism฀and,฀ in฀particular,฀to฀the฀self-esteem฀and฀mobilization฀of฀many฀indigenous฀ organizations฀and฀intellectuals,฀with฀whom฀Bonfil฀maintained฀close฀ties฀ and฀whom฀he฀promoted฀through฀different฀media.11฀It฀also฀contributed฀to฀ cementing฀a฀more฀adequate฀concept฀of฀the฀“indigenous฀problem.”฀The฀ book฀made฀it฀clear฀that฀the฀“indigenous฀problem”฀entailed฀a฀questioning฀ of฀the฀national฀model฀of฀the฀country฀and฀was฀not฀an฀obstacle฀caused฀ by฀the฀backwardness฀of฀a฀demographic฀minority. In฀ the฀ country’s฀ democratization,฀ which฀ grew฀ stronger฀ beginning฀ in฀the฀mid-1980s฀and฀led,฀for฀the฀first฀time,฀to฀a฀candidate฀from฀an฀opposition฀party’s฀winning฀the฀presidency฀of฀Mexico฀in฀2000,฀the฀indigenous฀ groups’฀ situation฀ and฀ demands฀ played฀ practically฀ no฀ role฀ whatsoever.฀In฀1992,฀two฀controversial฀modifications฀to฀the฀Constitution฀ brought฀them฀briefly฀back฀into฀the฀national฀limelight.฀On฀one฀hand,฀ motivated฀by฀the฀International฀Labour฀Organization’s฀Convention฀169,฀ concerning฀indigenous฀and฀tribal฀peoples฀in฀independent฀countries,฀ and฀by฀preparations฀for฀the฀commemoration฀of฀the฀five฀hundred฀years฀ of฀the฀American-European฀encounter,฀one฀addition฀to฀the฀Constitution฀ made฀mention฀of฀the฀indigenous฀population฀for฀the฀first฀time฀in฀that฀ document,฀recognizing฀it฀as฀the฀basis฀of฀the฀country’s฀multiculturalism.฀ On฀the฀other฀hand,฀modification฀of฀a฀different฀article฀put฀an฀end฀to฀ agrarian฀reform฀and฀made฀peasants’฀land฀vulnerable฀to฀market฀forces,฀ permitting฀ allocation฀ of฀ the฀ ejidos฀ (the฀ most฀ common฀ form฀ of฀ land฀

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tenancy฀among฀the฀indigenous฀population)฀to฀individuals,฀as฀well฀as฀ the฀rent฀and฀sale฀of฀ejido฀land. Finally,฀ it฀ was฀ indigenous฀ people฀ themselves฀ who฀ demanded฀ the฀ country’s฀ attention.฀ On฀ precisely฀ the฀ day฀ that฀ the฀ North฀ American฀ Free฀Trade฀Agreement฀(NAFTA)฀went฀into฀effect,฀1฀January฀1994,฀the฀ Chiapanecan฀ neo-Zapatistas฀ initiated฀ their฀ armed฀ uprising.฀ Its฀ brief฀ military฀phase฀and฀heavily฀publicized฀demands฀provoked,฀over฀several฀ years,฀ an฀ intense฀ debate฀ over฀ the฀ situation฀ of฀ Mexico’s฀ indigenous฀ peoples฀and฀the฀national฀project.฀It฀also฀prompted฀a฀complicated฀process฀ of฀negotiation฀between฀the฀rebels฀and฀the฀federal฀government,฀which฀ remains฀unfinished฀even฀now. At฀the฀same฀time,฀indigenist฀policy฀began฀to฀break฀apart.฀On฀one฀hand,฀ new฀programs฀were฀established,฀and฀people฀of฀indigenous฀extraction฀ were฀named฀to฀various฀directive฀posts.฀On฀the฀other฀hand,฀the฀number฀ of฀uncoordinated฀indigenist฀agencies฀increased,฀the฀resources฀assigned฀ to฀the฀indigenist฀apparatus฀were฀reduced,฀and฀the฀Inter-American฀Indian฀ Institute’s฀activities฀were฀frozen. In฀the฀anthropological฀community,฀all฀these฀developments฀provoked฀ an฀authentic฀boom฀in฀studies฀and฀events฀surrounding฀the฀varied—and฀ often฀very฀“traditional”—topics฀related฀to฀the฀indigenous฀peoples,฀their฀ cultures,฀and฀interethnic฀relations฀in฀the฀country,฀as฀well฀as฀reflections฀ on฀the฀pluricultural฀character฀of฀the฀nation.฀However,฀anthropologists’฀ efforts฀to฀systematize฀and฀share฀their฀knowledge฀with฀other฀specialists,฀ political฀actors,฀the฀indigenous฀groups฀and฀movements,฀and฀the฀public฀ in฀ general฀ still฀ do฀ not฀ correspond฀ to฀ the฀ country’s฀ objective฀ needs.฀ And฀few฀anthropologists฀are฀truly฀familiar฀with฀any฀of฀the฀indigenous฀ cultures,฀from฀whom฀they฀are฀separated฀by฀a฀language฀barrier฀(among฀ others). In฀short,฀Mexican฀anthropology฀of฀the฀last฀three฀decades฀contrasts฀ sharply฀with฀that฀of฀its฀first฀four฀decades฀as฀a฀modern฀science฀in฀the฀ country.฀In฀its฀first฀stage,฀past฀and฀present฀indigenous฀groups฀were฀almost฀ the฀only฀phenomena฀anthropologists฀studied,฀and฀the฀anthropological฀ knowledge฀generated฀about฀these฀internal฀others฀was฀tightly฀linked฀to฀ a฀strategy฀for฀their฀transformation,฀directed฀by฀the฀state,฀in฀the฀goal฀of฀ completing฀the฀process฀of฀national฀formation.฀The฀second฀stage฀began฀ with฀the฀eclipsing฀of฀this฀topic,฀but฀later—and฀in฀good฀measure฀due฀to฀ mobilization฀by฀indigenous฀people฀themselves—the฀design฀of฀a฀model฀ of฀the฀country฀that฀permitted฀their฀incorporation฀as฀different฀peoples฀ became฀one฀of฀the฀principal฀topics฀of฀anthropological฀research฀and฀a฀ perspective฀that฀permeated฀many฀other฀topics฀as฀well.

98฀

Esteban Krotz

The฀Culture-Class฀Dialectic The฀ history฀ described฀ in฀ the฀ previous฀ section฀ was฀ interlaced฀ with฀ a฀ sequence฀of฀hegemonic,฀paradigmatic฀positions฀in฀Mexican฀anthropology฀ over฀the฀near฀century฀of฀its฀existence฀as฀a฀scientific฀discipline.฀I฀have฀ already฀ commented฀ on฀ the฀ strong฀ influence฀ that฀ North฀ American฀ culturalism฀ exercised฀ over฀ Mexican฀ anthropology฀ in฀ its฀ first฀ phase.฀ Yet฀ this฀ influence฀ kindled฀ not฀ mere฀ imitation฀ but฀ rather฀ a฀ creative฀ transformation฀of฀the฀culturalist฀theoretical฀orientation฀for฀purposes฀of฀ understanding฀the฀Mexican฀situation฀and฀illuminating฀the฀formation฀ of฀a฀national฀culture.฀Toward฀this฀end,฀anthropologists฀greatly฀reduced฀ the฀ weight฀ of฀ the฀ relativist฀ component฀ of฀ the฀ original฀ theoretical฀ formulation,฀and฀they฀combined฀that฀formulation฀with฀an฀evolutionist฀ perspective฀in฀which฀the฀nation-state฀constituted฀a฀universal฀stage— though฀one฀still฀not฀entirely฀achieved฀in฀Mexico. According฀ to฀ a฀ concept฀ of฀ culture฀ inherited฀ from฀ the฀ nineteenth฀ century,฀ the฀ nation฀ in฀ Mexico฀ could฀ be฀ thought฀ of฀ as฀ nothing฀ but฀ homogeneous,฀especially฀in฀its฀superstructural฀sphere.฀Just฀how฀strongly฀ national฀unity฀was฀understood฀as฀uniformity฀was฀still฀obvious฀in฀the฀late฀ 1980s,฀when฀some฀Mexican฀anthropologists฀rejected฀the฀demand฀for฀ indigenous฀autonomy,฀considering฀it฀unavoidably฀damaging฀to฀national฀ integrity฀ and฀ sovereignty฀ and฀ even฀ dangerous฀ for฀ being฀ potentially฀ separatist฀(and฀thereby฀exploitable฀by฀the฀United฀States฀to฀weaken฀the฀ country฀in฀the฀same฀way฀it฀had฀done฀on฀the฀Atlantic฀coast฀of฀Nicaragua).฀ At฀the฀same฀time,฀proponents฀of฀orthodox฀Marxist฀positions฀refused฀ to฀ recognize฀ in฀ noncapitalist฀ forms฀ of฀ production฀ anything฀ except฀ precapitalist฀survivals,฀and฀they฀objected฀to฀the฀multilineal฀model฀of฀ evolution,฀contrasting฀it,฀as฀Aguirre฀had฀in฀his฀indigenism,฀with฀the฀ idea฀of฀the฀necessary฀conversion฀of฀the฀peasants฀and฀the฀indigenous฀ population฀into฀proletarians. Because฀of฀the฀preeminence฀of฀the฀National฀Institute฀of฀Anthropology฀ and฀History฀and฀the฀National฀Indigenist฀Institute฀within฀the฀anthropological฀community,฀the฀union฀of฀the฀four฀traditional฀anthropological฀ subdisciplines—nuanced฀ by฀ the฀ addition฀ of฀ an฀ important฀ historical฀ component—was฀maintained.฀The฀historical฀component฀had฀already฀ been฀expressed฀in฀the฀conception฀of฀the฀first฀nineteenth-century฀institution฀of฀importance฀for฀Mexican฀anthropology,฀the฀National฀Museum฀ of฀Natural฀History,฀Archaeology,฀and฀History฀(founded฀in฀1865),฀and฀ it฀was฀constantly฀reinforced฀by฀the฀presence฀of฀archaeological฀vestiges฀ everywhere,฀ by฀ the฀ colonial฀ centers฀ in฀ the฀ major฀ cities,฀ and฀ by฀ the฀ state฀ doctrine’s฀ insistence฀ on฀ the฀ mestizo฀ character฀ of฀ the฀ Mexican฀ people.฀The฀last฀was฀represented฀emblematically฀in฀the฀“Plaza฀of฀the฀

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Three฀Cultures”฀in฀Tlatelolco,฀where฀an฀inscription฀in฀stone฀defines฀the฀ result฀of฀the฀final฀battle฀of฀1521:฀“It฀was฀neither฀triumph฀nor฀defeat;฀ it฀was฀the฀painful฀birth฀of฀the฀mestizo฀people฀that฀makes฀up฀Mexico฀ today.”฀The฀protection฀and฀reconstruction฀of฀spectacular฀historical฀sites฀ and฀buildings,฀the฀creation฀en฀masse฀of฀archaeology-history-ethnology฀ museums฀throughout฀the฀country,฀and฀the฀use฀of฀indigenist฀policies฀ to฀ achieve฀ the฀ cultural฀ homogenization฀ of฀ the฀ nation฀ contributed฀ decisively฀ to฀ the฀ consolidation฀ of฀ Mexican฀ anthropology.฀ It฀ thereby฀ gained฀itself฀a฀prominent฀place฀among฀the฀social-science฀disciplines,฀ an฀achievement฀rare฀even฀in฀those฀countries฀where฀anthropology฀was฀ born. Regarding฀the฀real฀transformations฀achieved฀in฀the฀indigenous฀regions฀ by฀ what฀ Aguirre฀ called฀ the฀ “Mexican฀ school”฀ of฀ anthropology,฀ few฀ evaluations฀of฀these฀interventions฀exist฀outside฀of฀the฀National฀Indigenous฀Institute’s฀reports.฀Yet฀it฀is฀striking฀how฀many฀“pilot฀projects”฀ were฀never฀converted฀into฀projects฀of฀regional฀transformation.฀This฀was฀ primarily฀due฀to฀the฀six-year฀rhythms฀of฀public฀administration,฀to฀the฀ fact฀that฀the฀indigenist฀institutions฀were฀preponderantly฀limited฀to฀tasks฀ of฀coordination฀and฀not฀execution,฀and฀to฀regional฀elites’฀resistance฀to฀ indigenist฀ activity.฀ Despite฀ expressing฀ occasional฀ admiration฀ for฀ the฀ builders฀of฀the฀pre-Hispanic฀pyramids฀and฀temples,฀the฀elites฀frequently฀ felt฀threatened฀by฀potential฀or฀real฀demands฀from฀the฀descendants฀of฀ those฀builders฀in฀respect฀to฀land,฀financing,฀and฀public฀services.฀In฀this฀ context฀we฀must฀remember฀that฀even฀today,฀the฀word฀Indian฀is฀used฀in฀ Mexico฀more฀as฀an฀insult฀than฀as฀a฀plain฀denomination฀for฀one฀part฀ of฀the฀population. In฀spite฀of฀the฀serious฀conflicts฀it฀caused,฀the฀critique฀of฀“established”฀ anthropology฀that฀appeared฀in฀the฀late฀1970s฀developed฀rapidly฀into฀ a฀ substitute฀ for฀ the฀ previously฀ predominant฀ theoretical฀ orientation,฀ especially฀in฀the฀university฀institutions฀in฀the฀capital฀(keeping฀in฀mind฀ that฀at฀the฀time฀there฀were฀only฀two฀anthropology฀schools฀in฀the฀rest฀ of฀the฀country,฀founded฀in฀1957฀and฀1966,฀respectively).฀It฀led฀many฀ Mexican฀anthropologists฀to฀distance฀themselves฀from฀indigenism฀(without,฀however,฀slowing฀down฀their฀engagement฀in฀other฀official฀agencies฀ related฀to฀social฀policy).฀That฀the฀different฀branches฀of฀this฀“new฀anthropology”฀shared฀an฀interest฀in฀social฀structure฀and฀its฀precise฀position฀in฀ dependent฀capitalism฀undoubtedly฀promoted฀greater฀attention฀to฀the฀ previously฀little-known฀British฀and฀French฀social฀anthropology.12 But฀ the฀ general฀ frame฀ of฀ debate฀ and฀ investigation฀ was฀ that฀ of฀ Marxism,฀at฀first฀rudimentary,฀mechanistic,฀and฀economistic,฀oriented฀ by฀Soviet฀manuals,฀but฀later฀more฀flexible฀and฀influenced฀principally฀ by฀ then฀ world-renowned฀ French฀ and฀ Italian฀ Marxists฀ and฀ Marxist฀

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anthropologists.฀The฀thinking฀of฀a฀long฀series฀of฀Marxists฀considered฀ “heterodox”฀or฀“renegade”฀by฀the฀“official”฀Marxism฀of฀the฀era,฀as฀well฀ as฀the฀ideas฀of฀a฀good฀number฀of฀Central฀and฀South฀American฀left-wing฀ social฀scientists,฀not฀a฀few฀of฀whom฀lived฀for฀periods฀of฀time฀as฀exiles฀ in฀ Mexico,฀ were฀ also฀ important.฀ Neo-evolutionism฀ and฀ multilineal฀ evolutionism,฀widely฀fused฀with฀Marxism,฀also฀played฀an฀important฀ role,฀explainable฀by฀Mexican฀anthropology’s฀traditional฀attention฀to฀ historical฀processes฀of฀long฀duration,฀as฀well฀as฀by฀its฀capacity฀to฀join฀ diverse฀ theoretical฀ anthropological฀ currents.฀ During฀ those฀ years฀ the฀ opposition฀ to฀ “culturalism,”฀ which฀ was฀ often฀ identified฀ with฀ North฀ American฀“cultural฀imperialism,”฀was฀so฀strong฀that฀the฀word฀culture฀ practically฀ disappeared฀ from฀ anthropological฀ texts฀ (see฀ Krotz฀ 1993).฀ Even฀studies฀as฀well฀known฀as฀the฀analyses฀of฀the฀media฀done฀in฀South฀ America’s฀ Southern฀ Cone฀ during฀ the฀ 1970s฀ and฀ the฀ highly฀ original฀ critiques฀of฀capitalist฀ideology฀in฀general฀and฀the฀educational฀system฀in฀ particular,฀such฀as฀those฀of฀Paulo฀Freire฀(1970)฀and฀Ivan฀Illich฀(1972),฀ motivated฀few฀concrete฀anthropological฀studies. Meanwhile,฀sociocultural฀aspects฀until฀then฀heavily฀researched,฀such฀ as฀language,฀family฀relationships,฀normative฀systems,฀and฀religion,฀were฀ left฀to฀one฀side.฀This฀was฀probably฀an฀extreme฀consequence฀of฀the฀search฀ for฀more฀suitable฀models฀of฀social฀analysis฀that฀would฀bring฀to฀light฀ the฀multiple฀relations฀of฀exploitation฀and฀oppression฀in฀force฀in฀the฀ country,฀which฀manifested฀themselves฀particularly฀crudely฀in฀the฀rural฀ countryside.฀Not฀a฀few฀anthropologists฀and฀students฀were฀tied,฀in฀one฀ form฀or฀another,฀to฀political,฀social,฀and฀religious฀organizations฀and฀to฀ movements฀of฀leftist฀orientation.฀Although฀they฀escaped฀the฀repression฀ common฀ in฀ the฀ rest฀ of฀ Latin฀ America,฀ they฀ still฀ remembered฀ with฀ anguish฀the฀pre-Olympic฀massacre฀of฀1968.฀In฀light฀of฀all฀this,฀it฀is฀not฀ strange฀that฀the฀anthropology฀generated฀from฀the฀late฀1970s฀until฀the฀ late฀1980s฀featured฀a฀strong฀tone฀of฀denunciation฀and฀social฀criticism,฀ almost฀ independent฀ from฀ the฀ intentions฀ or฀ personal฀ preferences฀ of฀ many฀of฀its฀practitioners.฀The฀nonexistence฀of฀an฀industrial฀proletariat฀ as฀the฀revolutionary฀subject฀predetermined฀by฀Marxist฀theory,฀on฀one฀ hand,฀and฀the฀fascinating฀Cuban฀and฀Chinese฀revolutions,฀together฀with฀ the฀ups฀and฀downs฀of฀Latin฀American฀and฀Vietnamese฀guerrillas,฀on฀the฀ other,฀turned฀the฀analysis฀of฀the฀rural฀population฀extremely฀mechanical,฀ especially฀the฀debate฀over฀the฀future฀of฀the฀peasantry฀and฀the฀seemingly฀ endless฀controversy฀over฀the฀“Asiatic฀mode฀of฀production.”13 In฀the฀1980s฀the฀word฀culture฀slowly฀reappeared฀in฀Mexican฀anthropology,฀ prompted฀ by฀ Gramscian฀ Marxism.฀ The฀ concept฀ of฀ “popular฀ culture”฀permitted฀a฀fruitful฀connection฀between฀the฀discipline’s฀typical฀

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micro-scale฀studies฀of฀urban฀barrios,฀rural-to-urban฀migrants,฀factory฀ workers,฀and฀union฀movements,฀on฀one฀hand,฀and฀a฀global฀frame฀of฀ analysis฀from฀a฀class฀perspective,฀on฀the฀other.฀As฀a฀result,฀the฀effective฀ segmentation฀of฀work,฀daily฀life,฀political฀interests,฀and฀symbolic฀expressions฀in฀the฀largest฀sectors฀of฀the฀Mexican฀population฀came฀to฀light฀ in฀increasing฀detail,฀and฀terms฀such฀as฀“cultures฀of฀work”฀and฀“urban฀ culture”฀began฀to฀proliferate.฀At฀the฀same฀time,฀the฀analytical฀decontextualization฀ of฀ these฀ social฀ groups฀ was฀ avoided฀ by฀ maintaining฀ a฀ familiar,฀comprehensive฀theoretical฀scheme฀and฀the฀customary฀critique฀ of฀the฀system.฀The฀significant฀advance฀in฀the฀democratization฀of฀political฀ life฀beginning฀in฀the฀mid-1980s฀contributed฀to฀raising฀scholars’฀interest฀ in฀the฀superstructural฀sphere,฀in฀the฀subjectivity฀of฀social฀actors,฀and,฀ consequently,฀in฀the฀field฀of฀“political฀culture.”฀Anthropologists฀also฀ began฀to฀pay฀some฀attention฀to฀indigenous฀populations฀again,฀although฀ for฀a฀long฀time฀only฀as฀part฀of฀the฀“popular฀cultures.” Since฀1980,฀the฀institutional฀growth฀of฀Mexican฀anthropology฀has฀ been฀ continuous.฀ Research฀ centers฀ have฀ been฀ founded,฀ universities฀ have฀opened฀departments฀of฀anthropology฀(almost฀always฀social฀anthropology),14฀and฀the฀numbers฀of฀museums฀and฀long-term฀archaeological฀ projects฀have฀grown.฀Graduate฀degrees฀have฀multiplied฀(in฀the฀early฀ 1970s฀there฀existed฀only฀one฀master’s฀degree฀and฀one฀doctoral฀degree฀ program,฀both฀at฀a฀private฀university).฀All฀of฀Mexico’s฀anthropological฀ institutions฀have฀benefited฀from฀increases฀in฀full-time฀faculty฀positions฀ and฀from฀the฀relative฀ease฀with฀which฀conferences฀can฀now฀be฀organized฀ and฀written฀works฀of฀all฀types฀published.฀Importantly,฀however,฀almost฀ no฀anthropological฀libraries฀deserving฀of฀the฀name฀exist฀outside฀the฀ capital,฀and฀no฀university฀has฀managed฀to฀gather฀a฀base฀of฀materials฀ on฀any฀one฀theme,฀not฀even฀on฀the฀indigenous฀groups฀of฀its฀region,฀ that฀would฀enable฀scholars฀to฀avoid฀going฀to฀foreign฀universities฀for฀ any฀significant฀research฀in฀anthropology฀or฀history.฀Moreover,฀a฀large฀ percentage฀of฀the฀research฀done฀even฀in฀academic฀institutions฀is฀limited฀ to฀ethnographic฀description฀or฀historical฀“inventory.” Since฀the฀beginning฀of฀the฀1990s,฀a฀somewhat฀disturbing,฀internally฀ contradictory฀panorama฀has฀appeared.฀In฀the฀first฀of฀a฀set฀of฀contrasts,฀ the฀ presence฀ of฀ anthropology—especially฀ of฀ social฀ anthropology/ ethnology—in฀academic฀institutions,฀on฀one฀hand,฀continues฀to฀grow฀ and฀ gain฀ strength.฀ Programs฀ offering฀ graduate฀ degrees฀ in฀ particular฀ continue฀to฀multiply฀and฀frequently฀attract฀professionals฀from฀other฀ disciplines,฀ social฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ medical฀ and฀ agricultural.฀ On฀ the฀ other฀ hand,฀ a฀ silent฀ transformation฀ of฀ the฀ university฀ system—following฀ the฀overall฀dictates฀of฀neoliberalism฀and฀the฀criteria฀of฀efficiency฀and฀

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productivism—is฀leading฀to฀a฀decline฀in฀the฀importance฀of฀fieldwork,฀ especially฀in฀teaching฀programs.฀It฀is฀also฀the฀reason฀many฀professors,฀ most฀of฀whom฀represent฀the฀first฀generation฀in฀their฀family฀with฀an฀ academic฀degree,฀have฀been฀pushed฀to฀organize฀their฀activities฀according฀ to฀the฀rationality฀of฀productivism.฀Yet฀the฀anthropological฀community฀ has฀made฀no฀organized฀response฀to฀this฀matter,฀which฀is฀highly฀relevant฀ for฀the฀conception฀and฀future฀of฀science฀and฀scientific฀research. A฀second฀paradox฀is฀that,฀on฀one฀hand,฀the฀number฀of฀publications฀ coming฀out฀of฀Mexican฀anthropology—books฀as฀well฀as฀periodicals—is฀ growing,฀ and฀ they฀ are฀ often฀ of฀ high฀ quality.฀ In฀ this฀ way,฀ reflection฀ about฀ Mexican฀ anthropology฀ has฀ also฀ been฀ augmented.฀ Yet฀ on฀ the฀ other฀hand,฀the฀infrastructure฀of฀the฀majority฀of฀Mexico’s฀research฀and฀ teaching฀centers฀does฀not฀even฀permit฀scholars฀to฀collect฀and฀familiarize฀ themselves฀with฀the฀anthropological฀knowledge฀generated฀in฀their฀own฀ country,฀much฀less฀that฀stemming฀from฀the฀rest฀of฀Latin฀America,฀the฀ Caribbean,฀or฀other฀parts฀of฀the฀global฀South. In฀a฀third฀contrast,฀although฀the฀presence฀of฀anthropologists฀in฀diverse฀ areas฀of฀public฀administration฀and฀national฀political฀debate฀remains฀ strong,฀ the฀ weakness฀ of฀ profession-based฀ organizations฀ has฀ made฀ it฀ impossible฀for฀them฀to฀join฀forces฀to฀coordinate฀any฀internal฀debate฀ or฀direct฀one฀toward฀society฀at฀large.฀In฀addition,฀a฀divide฀is฀growing฀ between,฀on฀one฀side,฀anthropologists฀who฀work฀in฀academic฀institutions฀and฀tend฀to฀assume฀that฀they฀represent฀the฀entirety฀of฀Mexican฀ anthropology฀and,฀on฀the฀other,฀those฀who฀work฀in฀state฀administration฀ and฀frequently฀penetrate,฀in฀creative฀ways,฀both฀the฀public฀and฀private฀ sectors,฀including฀the฀growing฀sector฀of฀nongovernmental฀organizations.฀ In฀this฀context,฀the฀contrast฀between฀the฀political฀contents฀of฀many฀ anthropological฀ discussions฀ carried฀ out฀ in฀ general฀ society฀ and฀ the฀ depoliticization฀of฀university฀institutions฀also฀merits฀attention. A฀fourth฀paradox฀is฀that,฀on฀one฀hand,฀an฀increasingly฀rich฀variety฀of฀ topics฀is฀available฀for฀research฀and฀publication.฀Some฀matters฀that฀went฀ uninvestigated฀for฀years,฀such฀as฀religion,฀the฀culture-nature฀relationship,฀life฀in฀the฀big฀cities,฀and฀art,฀now฀have฀a฀fixed฀place,฀and฀newer฀ topics,฀such฀as฀relations฀between฀genders฀and฀generations,฀migration฀ and฀political฀cultures,฀and฀juridical฀anthropology,฀have฀been฀added.฀On฀ the฀other฀hand,฀all฀these฀investigations฀are฀carried฀out฀and฀written฀works฀ published฀ with฀ almost฀ no฀ contact฀ between฀ researchers฀ and฀ without฀ debate—as฀is฀evidenced,฀for฀example,฀by฀the฀absence฀of฀critical฀reviews฀ of฀writings฀and฀events.15 Finally,฀Mexican฀anthropology’s฀definitive฀recuperation฀of฀the฀concept฀of฀“culture”—that฀important฀identifier฀of฀the฀discipline—can฀be฀

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highlighted฀as฀a฀characteristic฀trait฀of฀doubtless฀significance.฀Although฀ there฀ is฀ no฀ uncontested฀ hegemony,฀ a฀ semiotic฀ approach฀ seems฀ to฀ predominate.฀ Consequently,฀ the฀ superstructural฀ angle฀ (politics,฀ law,฀ religion,฀and฀communication)฀also฀prevails฀with฀respect฀to฀the฀indigenous฀ topic.฀ Paradoxically,฀ what฀ the฀ first฀ manifesto฀ of฀ the฀ Zapatista฀ movement฀denounced฀as฀“the฀undeclared฀genocidal฀war฀against฀our฀ peoples,”฀as฀well฀as฀the฀socioeconomic฀component฀of฀their฀demands— for฀“work,฀land,฀roof,฀food,฀health,฀education,฀independence,฀liberty,฀ democracy,฀justice฀and฀peace”฀for฀all฀Mexican฀people฀(Comandancia฀ General฀1994:฀35)—is฀left฀out฀of฀the฀line฀of฀vision.฀Could฀it฀really฀be฀ said฀that฀the฀concept฀of฀culture,฀which฀was฀to฀correct฀the฀economistic฀ and฀mechanistic฀narrowness฀of฀the฀sociologistic฀and฀objectivist฀vision฀ previously฀in฀vogue,฀in฀the฀end฀did฀not฀remedy฀that฀narrowness฀but฀ became฀merely฀a฀substitute฀for฀it?฀In฀effect,฀whereas฀before฀references฀to฀ social฀class,฀the฀class฀struggle,฀imperialism,฀and฀revolution฀were฀almost฀ obligatory,฀one฀now฀finds฀mention฀of฀difference,฀diversity,฀globalization,฀ and฀intercultural฀dialogue.16

Perspectives฀on฀the฀Identity฀of฀Mexican฀Anthropology I฀hope฀I฀have฀shown฀that฀Mexican฀anthropological฀science฀has฀been฀so฀ closely฀tied,฀on฀various฀levels,฀to฀the฀Mexican฀sociocultural฀and฀political฀ system฀that฀it฀would฀be฀impossible฀to฀understand฀anthropology฀without฀ reference฀to฀that฀system.฀The฀presence฀of฀indigenous฀peoples฀has฀been฀ and฀continues฀to฀be฀defining฀for฀Mexican฀anthropology฀(certainly,฀it฀gives฀ the฀term฀multiculturality฀a฀significantly฀different฀meaning฀in฀Mexico,฀as฀ in฀all฀of฀Latin฀America,฀from฀that฀in฀Europe฀and฀the฀United฀States).฀Since฀ the฀arrival฀of฀the฀Spaniards฀in฀the฀sixteenth฀century,฀these฀“others”฀have฀ presented฀a฀problem฀of฀knowledge฀and฀of฀political฀and฀social฀action.฀At฀ first฀the฀colonists฀solved฀this฀problem฀by฀assigning฀indigenous฀people฀ the฀ sort฀ of฀ subordinated฀ coexistence฀ typical฀ of฀ every฀ colonial฀ order.฀ The฀liberalism฀of฀the฀nineteenth฀century฀then฀decreed฀the฀problem’s฀ inexistence.฀ The฀ postrevolutionary฀ regime฀ recognized฀ it฀ anew฀ as฀ a฀ problem฀of฀national฀transition—for฀which฀reason฀it฀was฀not฀included฀ in฀the฀Constitution—and฀fomented฀the฀establishment฀of฀anthropology฀ as฀an฀instrument฀to฀diagnose฀the฀indigenous฀people’s฀situation,฀starting฀ from฀their฀most฀ancient฀antecedents,฀and฀to฀distinguish฀between฀what฀ was฀conservable฀(which฀was฀little,฀according฀to฀Gamio,฀and฀more,฀for฀ Aguirre)฀and฀what฀had฀to฀be฀suppressed. In฀ that฀ manner,฀ indigenism฀ was฀ born฀ as฀ an฀ original฀ creation฀ of฀ research-action฀that฀was฀oriented฀more฀by฀anthropology’s฀origins฀(the฀

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concept฀of฀the฀nation฀in฀the฀nineteenth฀century)฀than฀by฀the฀model฀of฀ Indian-white฀or฀black-white฀relations฀in฀the฀country฀where฀relativistic฀ culturalism฀originated.฀In฀this฀sense,฀all฀of฀the฀most฀original฀theoretical฀ formulations฀developed฀by฀Mexican฀anthropologists฀in฀the฀twentieth฀ century—from฀Aguirre’s฀concept฀of฀acculturation฀as฀a฀universal฀process฀ and฀a฀strategy฀of฀social฀policy฀to฀Bonfil’s฀model฀of฀the฀battle฀of฀two฀ civilizations,฀ in฀ addition฀ to฀ different฀ understandings฀ of฀ the฀ peasant฀ mode฀of฀production—shared฀an฀equally฀original,฀although฀not฀always฀ explicit,฀multilineal฀evolutionist฀vision:฀on฀one฀hand,฀the฀possibility฀of฀ a฀unique฀Mexican฀route฀to฀modernity,฀and฀on฀the฀other,฀the฀existence฀ of฀a฀diversity฀of฀modernities. One฀ also฀ can฀ find฀ in฀ this฀ evolutionary฀ multilinearity฀ the฀ diverse฀ intentions฀of฀Mexican฀anthropologists฀to฀identify฀a฀Mexican฀anthropological฀tradition฀in฀whose฀beginnings฀the฀places฀of฀Montaigne฀and฀ Hobbes,฀Rousseau฀and฀Herder฀are฀occupied฀by฀Bernadino฀de฀Sahagún฀ and฀Bartolomé฀de฀las฀Casas,฀José฀de฀Acosta฀and฀Francisco฀Javier฀Clavijero.฀ Yet฀in฀Mexican฀teaching฀programs,฀Mexican฀anthropology฀(in฀isolation฀ from฀other฀Latin฀American฀and฀Caribbean฀anthropologies)฀is฀presented฀ more฀ as฀ an฀ “annex”฀ to฀ or฀ a฀ simple฀ “adaptation”฀ of฀ the฀ dominant฀ anthropology,฀which฀is฀seen฀as฀universal.฀Congruently,฀the฀occasional฀ publication฀ of฀ Mexican฀ anthropological฀ texts฀ in฀ foreign฀ journals฀ of฀ international฀circulation,฀all฀of฀which฀are฀published฀in฀the฀countries฀ where฀anthropology฀originated,฀is฀sometimes฀more฀a฀mark฀of฀certification฀ than฀of฀participation฀in฀the฀global฀process฀of฀communication. The฀names฀of฀the฀precursors฀of฀Mexican฀anthropology฀show฀modern฀ anthropological฀science฀to฀be฀the฀most฀recent฀link฀in฀five฀centuries฀of฀ intellectual฀effort฀to฀clarify฀and฀define฀the฀collective฀identity฀born฀in฀ New฀Spain.฀This฀task฀is฀far฀from฀being฀merely฀an฀intellectual฀enterprise— ever฀since฀the฀first฀creoles฀and฀the฀instigators฀of฀Mexican฀independence฀ undertook฀it,฀the฀matter฀of฀identity฀has฀been฀of฀immediate฀political฀ relevance,฀as฀it฀continues฀to฀be฀in฀decisions฀about฀the฀country’s฀educational,฀scientific,฀and฀technological฀systems฀and฀in฀respect฀to฀the฀10฀ million฀ Mexican-born฀ residents฀ of฀ the฀ United฀ States.฀ The฀ task฀ can฀ directly฀affect฀those฀who฀undertake฀it,฀sometimes฀in฀terms฀of฀personal฀ identity,฀as฀when฀one฀discovers฀in฀one’s฀own฀culture฀or฀even฀in฀one’s฀ own฀ family฀ history฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ roots฀ of฀ Mexican฀ culture.฀ Sometimes฀ it฀affects฀people฀in฀terms฀of฀expanded฀or฀diminished฀employment฀opportunities,฀as฀when฀one฀begins฀to฀legislate฀on฀linguistic฀rights.฀And฀in฀ political-cultural฀terms,฀the฀task฀always฀affects฀those฀who฀undertake฀it,฀ as฀when฀one฀discusses฀the฀redefinition฀of฀the฀project฀of฀nation฀building.฀ If฀pending฀legal฀reforms฀were฀to฀advance฀in฀a฀serious฀manner,฀then฀the฀

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task฀of฀defining฀Mexico’s฀collective฀identity฀would฀also฀affect฀people฀ in฀ economic฀ terms,฀ because฀ scant฀ public฀ budgets฀ would฀ have฀ to฀ be฀ redistributed฀in฀a฀new฀way. The฀general฀malaise฀in฀the฀social฀sciences฀in฀many฀places,฀sometimes฀ identified฀with฀and฀sometimes฀promoted฀by฀discourses฀on฀globalization฀ and฀ on฀ the฀ alleged฀ end฀ of฀ the฀ grand฀ narratives,฀ influences฀ Mexican฀ anthropology,฀too.฀But฀uncertainty฀about฀the฀future฀of฀democracy฀in฀ the฀country฀weighs฀heavily฀today฀as฀well,฀beyond฀Mexico’s฀economic฀ problems฀and฀beyond฀the฀problems฀democracy฀is฀facing฀in฀other฀parts฀of฀ the฀world.฀An฀entire฀generation,฀which฀pushed฀for฀and฀finally฀achieved฀ a฀system฀more฀or฀less฀free฀of฀political฀parties,฀with฀effective฀vote฀counts,฀ alternation฀in฀the฀principal฀positions฀of฀public฀administration,฀and฀the฀ first฀steps฀toward฀a฀redefinition฀of฀the฀relationship฀between฀the฀legislative,฀ executive,฀and฀judicial฀powers,฀seems฀fatigued฀in฀the฀face฀of฀demands฀ for฀inculturation฀(indigenization)฀of฀the฀doctrine฀of฀human฀rights.฀It฀ also฀seems฀fatigued฀in฀view฀of฀the฀conversion฀of฀demands฀for฀“respect฀ for฀indigenous฀cultures”฀into฀demands฀for฀just฀and฀practicable฀laws฀and฀ regulations.฀This฀generation฀seems฀weary฀of฀the฀uneven฀dissemination฀ of฀the฀values฀of฀transparency,฀accountability,฀and฀critical฀participation฀ among฀the฀social฀spheres.฀There฀are฀plenty฀of฀uncertainties฀about฀the฀ meaning,฀role,฀and฀future฀of฀the฀state. In฀this฀context,฀a฀parallel฀between฀the฀history฀of฀Mexican฀anthropology฀ and฀that฀of฀the฀hegemonic฀anthropology฀portrayed฀in฀the฀textbooks฀ generally฀used฀in฀Mexico฀demands฀attention.฀The฀hegemonic฀anthropology฀has฀endured,฀in฀the฀wake฀of฀its฀original฀paradigm฀of฀nineteenthcentury฀evolutionism,฀repeated฀transformations฀of฀such฀breadth฀that฀ they฀can฀be฀described฀only฀as฀ruptures.฀Structural-functional฀anthropology,฀diffusionism,฀and฀culturalism฀were฀understood฀as฀re-foundations฀of฀ the฀discipline,฀just฀as฀Marxism฀would฀be฀half฀a฀century฀later฀and,฀three฀ decades฀ after฀ that,฀ the฀ neo-Boasian฀ anthropology฀ that฀ is฀ sometimes฀ called฀postmodern.฀Mexican฀anthropology,฀too,฀has฀known฀substitutions฀ of฀this฀type.฀Curiously,฀unlike฀the฀first฀radical฀challenge฀of฀indigenism,฀ which฀corresponded฀to฀a฀generational฀change,฀the฀recent฀eclipsing฀of฀ Marxism฀ was฀ carried฀ out฀ without฀ a฀ generational฀ change฀ and฀ almost฀ without฀controversy. In฀past฀decades,฀controversies฀about฀the฀dependent฀development฀of฀ the฀country฀included฀the฀topics฀of฀the฀rules฀and฀cognitive฀characteristics฀ of฀anthropological฀science,฀of฀its฀social฀function฀and฀its฀insertion฀into฀a฀ world฀scene฀marked฀by฀cultural฀imperialism.฀Today฀this฀type฀of฀discussion฀ is฀nearly฀extinct.฀This฀is฀at฀least฀partially฀due฀to฀Mexican฀social฀scientists’฀ acceptance,฀ without฀ real฀ questioning,฀ of฀ the฀ external฀ and฀ internal฀

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pressures฀they฀feel฀to฀make฀their฀activities฀conform฀with฀supposedly฀ universal฀productivist฀canons—a฀conformity฀demanded,฀in฀many฀forms,฀ by฀the฀national฀educational฀apparatus฀since฀the฀1990s.฀Apparently฀this฀ situation฀has฀reinforced฀the฀fact฀that฀in฀Mexican฀anthropology,฀the฀topic฀ of฀its฀changing฀influence฀on฀the฀rest฀of฀Latin฀America—in฀reaction฀to฀ which฀other฀parts฀of฀the฀South฀have฀criticized฀Mexican฀anthropology฀ in฀much฀the฀same฀way฀that฀Mexican฀anthropologists฀have฀criticized฀ the฀powerful฀anthropologies฀of฀the฀North—seems฀never฀to฀have฀posed฀ any฀concern฀at฀all. In฀this฀context฀it฀is฀interesting฀to฀note฀some฀indications฀that฀Mexican฀ anthropology,฀independently฀of฀its฀theoretical฀perspectives฀or฀specific฀ institutional฀ insertions,฀ may฀ soon฀ have฀ to฀ subject฀ itself฀ to฀ a฀ type฀ of฀ critical฀judgment฀that฀until฀now฀was฀thought฀necessary฀only฀for฀the฀ hegemonic฀anthropology฀of฀the฀North.฀This฀is฀so฀because,฀to฀the฀degree฀ that฀ some฀ indigenous฀ cultures฀ continue฀ their฀ revitalization,฀ more฀ observations฀of฀the฀type฀made฀by฀a฀Mayan฀ethnolinguist฀could฀emerge฀ with฀respect฀to฀Mexican฀anthropology฀as฀practiced฀by฀non-indigenous฀ people:฀“Our฀dominators,฀by฀means฀of฀anthropological฀discourse,฀have฀ reserved฀for฀themselves฀the฀almost฀exclusive฀right฀to฀speak฀for฀us.฀Only฀ very฀recently฀have฀we฀begun฀to฀have฀access฀to฀this฀field฀of฀knowledge฀ and฀to฀express฀our฀own฀word”฀(Alonso฀Caamal฀1997:฀320).

Final฀Comment The฀trajectory฀and฀current฀situation฀of฀Mexican฀anthropology฀are฀as฀ unique฀as฀those฀of฀any฀other฀country฀or฀of฀any฀other฀national฀or฀linguisticcultural฀anthropological฀community.฀This฀anthropological฀tradition฀was฀ not฀formed฀as฀the฀immediate฀effect฀of฀a฀simple฀dissemination฀from฀the฀ main฀countries฀where฀the฀universal฀anthropological฀science฀originated฀ nearly฀a฀century฀and฀a฀half฀ago.฀Rather,฀as฀a฀result฀of฀a฀diverse฀array฀of฀ both฀exogenous฀and฀endogenous฀impulses,฀among฀which฀the฀diffusion฀of฀ European฀and฀North฀American฀anthropology฀has฀played฀a฀fundamental฀ role,฀Mexican฀anthropology฀has฀molded฀itself฀via฀a฀constant฀search฀to฀ understand฀and฀to฀act฀upon฀the฀country’s฀sociocultural฀diversity,฀which฀ has฀served,฀until฀now,฀as฀its฀principal฀object฀of฀study. Similar฀ observations฀ would฀ ring฀ true฀ in฀ any฀ place฀ where฀ “native”฀ anthropologists฀have฀made฀their฀appearance—native฀anthropologists฀ who,฀in฀contrast฀with฀other฀anthropologists,฀principally฀“study฀or฀studied฀ their฀own฀societies”฀(Boivin,฀Rosato,฀and฀Arribas฀1998:฀16).17฀A฀systematic฀ inventory฀and฀comparison฀of฀the฀“anthropologies฀of฀the฀South”฀would฀ reveal฀ more฀ clearly฀ their฀ characteristics,฀ their฀ weaknesses,฀ and฀ their฀

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potential.฀This฀does฀not฀suggest฀that฀these฀anthropologies฀are฀totally฀ distant฀from฀or฀necessarily฀opposed฀to฀Northern฀anthropologies. Instead,฀clarifying฀the฀properties฀of฀the฀diverse฀anthropologies฀of฀the฀ South,฀whose฀societies฀of฀origin฀formed฀part฀of฀the฀initial฀anthropological฀ program฀as฀“objects฀of฀study,”฀would฀help฀clear฀a฀path฀toward฀a฀new฀ conception฀of฀a฀universal฀anthropology฀in฀which฀differences฀do฀not฀ necessarily฀ lead฀ to฀ hierarchical฀ divisions฀ but฀ rather฀ are฀ accepted฀ as฀ variations฀ on฀ a฀ common฀ base—as฀ occurs,฀ for฀ example,฀ in฀ the฀ cases฀ of฀ French฀ and฀ English฀ anthropology฀ (Asad฀ 1982:฀ 284).฀ In฀ this฀ way,฀ the฀ universal฀ anthropological฀ tradition฀ would฀ accept฀ the฀ historical฀ challenge฀of฀assuming฀for฀itself฀the฀essential฀trait฀of฀the฀human฀reality฀ it฀studies:฀to฀be฀one฀and฀diverse฀at฀the฀same฀time.

Notes 1.฀ For฀ an฀ elaboration฀ of฀ the฀ concept฀ of฀ “peripheral฀ anthropologies,”฀ see฀ several฀ works฀ by฀ Roberto฀ Cardoso฀ de฀ Oliveira฀ (1988,฀ 1998);฀ for฀ that฀ of฀ “anthropologies฀of฀the฀South,”฀see฀number฀6฀of฀Alteridades฀(http.//www.uamantropologia.info/alteridades/alteri_06.html).฀Some฀of฀these฀concepts฀are฀discussed฀ in฀ volume฀ 17฀ of฀ Critique฀ of฀ Anthropology.฀ Some฀ of฀ the฀ considerations฀ of฀ the฀ Catalan฀ anthropologist฀ Josep฀ R.฀ Llobera฀ (1990:฀ 109–26)฀ are฀ also฀ enlightening. 2.฀ I฀am฀grateful฀to฀Andrés฀Medina฀and฀Roberto฀Varela฀for฀their฀observations฀ on฀a฀previous฀version฀of฀this฀chapter฀and฀to฀Jennifer฀Cassel฀for฀translating฀it฀ into฀English. 3.฀ I฀ elaborated฀ this฀ idea฀ in฀ greater฀ detail฀ in฀ Krotz฀ 1987.฀ Andrés฀ Medina฀ (1996b)฀ has฀ demonstrated฀ the฀ intrinsic฀ relationship฀ between฀ ethnography฀ and฀ the฀ nation฀ in฀ the฀ cases฀ of฀ three฀ important฀ anthropologists฀ from฀ Cuba,฀ Mexico,฀ and฀ Peru,฀ respectively.฀ The฀ anthropology-nation฀ relationship฀ also฀ appears฀in฀several฀of฀the฀contributions฀to฀Fahim฀1982. 4.฀ For฀more฀on฀the฀anthropological฀question฀and฀alterity,฀see฀Krotz฀2002:฀ 49–76. 5.฀ This฀ dependence฀ of฀ anthropology฀ on฀ its฀ available฀ empirical฀ objects฀ is฀ visible฀ in฀ so-called฀ political฀ anthropology,฀ which฀ emerged฀ between฀ the฀ two฀ world฀wars฀in฀those฀European฀countries฀interested฀in฀consolidating฀colonial฀ administrations฀in฀areas฀that฀still฀had฀strong฀and฀even฀challenging฀cultures.฀ North฀American฀anthropology฀at฀the฀time฀produced฀nothing฀equivalent฀for฀

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the฀study฀of฀its฀preferred฀objects,฀American฀Indians,฀until฀World฀War฀II฀and฀its฀ aftermath฀promoted฀the฀study฀of฀political฀cultures฀and฀national฀characters. ฀ 6.฀ It฀ should฀ be฀ remembered฀ that฀ until฀ the฀ middle฀ of฀ the฀ nineteenth฀ century,฀ the฀ majority฀ of฀ the฀ US฀ regions฀ where฀ Mexican฀ migrants฀ now฀ live฀ formed฀part฀of฀Mexican฀territory. ฀ 7.฀ This฀ type฀ of฀ statistical฀ information฀ can฀ be฀ found฀ in฀ the฀ volumes฀ of฀ the฀annual฀Inventario฀Antropológico,฀edited฀since฀1995฀by฀the฀Department฀of฀ Anthropology฀of฀the฀Autonomous฀Metropolitan฀University. ฀ 8.฀ For฀ further฀ information,฀ see฀ Marzal฀ 1981,฀ Oehmichen฀ Bazán฀ 1999,฀ Sánchez฀ 1999,฀ and฀ Villoro฀ 1979฀ [1950].฀ For฀ a฀ general฀ history฀ of฀ Mexican฀ anthropology,฀see฀volumes฀1฀and฀2฀of฀the฀work฀coordinated฀by฀Carlos฀García฀ Mora฀(1987–88);฀for฀a฀brief฀synthesis,฀see฀Krotz฀1991. ฀ 9.฀ For฀that฀reason,฀Ángel฀Palerm฀(1974)฀devoted฀one-third฀of฀his฀history฀ of฀ the฀ precursors฀ of฀ ethnology฀ to฀ authors฀ such฀ as฀ Bernardino฀ de฀ Sahagún,฀ Bartolomé฀de฀las฀Casas,฀José฀de฀Acosta,฀and฀Francisco฀Javier฀Clavijero. 10.฀ This฀ department฀ was฀ originally฀ created฀ as฀ part฀ of฀ the฀ National฀ Polytechnical฀ Institute’s฀ School฀ for฀ Biological฀ Sciences,฀ also฀ founded฀ during฀ the฀ Cárdenas฀years.฀The฀Polytechnical฀Institute฀was฀important฀as฀a฀place฀for฀the฀ formation฀of฀professionals฀from฀the฀popular฀sectors฀and฀for฀devoting฀attention฀ to฀the฀needs฀of฀the฀majority฀of฀the฀population. 11.฀ See,฀ as฀ an฀ example฀ of฀ this฀ influence฀ and฀ relationship,฀ the฀ case฀ of฀ an฀ educational฀program฀for฀indigenous฀ethnolinguists฀(Nakamura฀2001). 12.฀ The฀ term฀ “new฀ anthropology”฀ became฀ the฀ name฀ of฀ what฀ is฀ now฀ the฀ country’s฀oldest฀anthropology฀journal,฀founded฀in฀1975. 13.฀ A฀detailed฀account฀of฀the฀controversy฀over฀the฀future฀of฀the฀peasantry฀ can฀be฀found฀in฀Hewitt฀de฀Alcántara฀1988.฀On฀the฀“Asiatic฀mode฀of฀production,”฀ see฀especially฀Palerm฀1972,฀1977,฀and,฀for฀a฀critique,฀Medina฀1983:฀55ff. 14.฀ Medina฀(1996a:฀89–91)฀has฀described฀the฀existence฀of฀a฀bifurcation฀in฀ Mexican฀anthropology,฀with฀one฀line฀more฀on฀ethnological฀(associated฀with฀ the฀ Boasian฀ approach)฀ and฀ the฀ other฀ more฀ socioanthropological฀ (associated฀ with฀the฀indigenism฀originated฀by฀Gamio). 15.฀ One฀exception,฀during฀the฀second฀half฀of฀the฀1990s,฀was฀the฀discussion฀of฀ indigenous฀autonomy,฀although฀in฀part฀it฀reminded฀one฀of฀the฀debates฀among฀ Marxists฀in฀the฀past฀by฀centering฀on฀the฀question฀of฀the฀“true”฀representation฀ of฀the฀interests฀of฀the฀“authentic”฀indigenous฀people. 16.฀ However,฀there฀has฀been฀an฀attempt฀to฀show฀that฀“those฀anthropological฀ approaches฀practiced฀by฀a฀minority฀remain฀healthy,฀that฀is,฀‘they฀are฀not฀in฀ crisis’”฀(Jáuregui฀1997:฀52). 17.฀ In฀ this฀ connection,฀ even฀ when฀ Mexican฀ students฀ obtain฀ graduate฀ degrees฀ in฀ foreign฀ countries,฀ they฀ usually฀ conduct฀ the฀ fieldwork฀ for฀ their฀ theses฀ in฀ their฀ places฀ of฀ origin.฀ This฀ situation฀ is฀ not฀ entirely฀ new,฀ but฀ I฀ do฀

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not฀ have฀ room฀ to฀ discuss฀ here฀ either฀ the฀ fact฀ that฀ European฀ anthropology,฀ from฀its฀beginnings,฀concerned฀itself฀with฀its฀internal฀others฀(which฀led฀to฀the฀ bifurcation฀of฀an฀ethnology฀directed฀toward฀the฀non-European฀social฀reality฀ and฀an฀ethnology฀also฀called฀folklore,฀the฀study฀of฀popular฀cultures,฀directed฀ at฀Europe’s฀internal฀reality)฀or฀the฀interesting฀reflections฀on฀“anthropology฀at฀ home”฀in฀some฀parts฀of฀the฀anthropology฀of฀the฀North.

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Part 2 Power and Hegemony in World Anthropologies

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s i x

How Many Centers and Peripheries in Anthropology? A Critical View of France

Eduardo P. Archetti

T

he฀historian฀of฀anthropology฀George฀Stocking฀observed฀that฀within฀ the฀Euro-American฀tradition฀in฀anthropology฀one฀could฀distinguish฀ between฀“anthropologies฀of฀‘empire฀building’฀and฀anthropologies฀of฀ ‘nation฀building’”฀(1982:฀172).฀It฀is฀usually฀assumed฀that฀the฀development฀ of฀anthropology฀in฀Great฀Britain฀represents฀the฀ideal฀type฀of฀empirebuilding฀anthropology.฀There,฀social฀anthropology฀was฀perceived฀and฀ defined฀as฀the฀child฀of฀colonialism,฀because฀its฀work฀was฀carried฀out฀ in฀ the฀ colonial฀ empire—for฀ example,฀ Malinowski฀ in฀ New฀ Guinea,฀ Radcliffe-Brown฀ in฀ the฀ Andamans,฀ Firth฀ in฀ New฀ Zealand,฀ Tikopia,฀ and฀Malaysia,฀Evans-Pritchard฀in฀the฀Sudan,฀Fortes฀in฀the฀Gold฀Coast,฀ Richard,฀ Gluckman,฀ and฀ Schapera฀ in฀ British฀ East฀ and฀ South฀ African฀ territories,฀and฀Leach฀in฀Burma฀(Goody฀1995:฀3).฀In฀contrast,฀in฀other฀ European฀ countries฀ during฀ the฀ nationalist฀ revival฀ of฀ the฀ nineteenth฀ century,฀a฀sharp฀distinction฀developed฀between฀Volkskunde,฀the฀study฀ of฀the฀internal฀rural฀population฀and฀its฀folklore,฀and฀Völkerkunde,฀the฀ inquiry฀ into฀ more฀ distant฀ others.฀ In฀ other฀ words,฀ anthropologies฀ of฀ nation฀building฀could฀coexist,฀if฀not฀necessarily฀with฀empire-building฀ practices,฀then฀at฀least฀with฀an฀internationally฀oriented฀discipline฀that฀ did฀research฀in฀colonial฀or฀noncolonial฀contexts฀outside฀of฀Europe. Anthropologists฀ had฀ to฀ work฀ under฀ shifting฀ social฀ and฀ economic฀ conditions.฀These฀included฀changes฀in฀political฀contexts฀and฀institutional฀organization;฀transformations฀in฀the฀sources฀of฀financial฀support;฀ the฀development฀of฀new฀class฀structures;฀the฀effects฀of฀world฀politics฀ and฀imperialism;฀and฀social฀conflicts฀both฀at฀home฀and฀abroad.฀Indeed,฀ 113

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national฀anthropological฀traditions฀in฀both฀Europe฀and฀North฀America฀ were฀conditioned฀by฀the฀way฀these฀various฀factors฀affected฀the฀development฀of฀the฀discipline.฀The฀increase฀in฀anthropological฀employment฀ during฀the฀years฀of฀economic฀depression฀and฀war฀in฀the฀United฀States฀ (1929–45),฀for฀example,฀was฀related฀to฀gaining฀work฀in฀a฀relief฀agency฀ or฀in฀the฀Department฀of฀Agriculture.฀According฀to฀Thomas฀Patterson฀ (2001:฀ 81),฀ hundreds฀ of฀ anthropologists฀ “were฀ asked฀ to฀ apply฀ their฀ knowledge฀to฀problems฀confronting฀the฀country—unemployment,฀the฀ conditions฀of฀Indian฀reservations,฀or฀the฀circumstances฀of฀small฀farmers.฀ That฀social฀knowledge฀should฀have฀an฀immediate฀practical฀utility฀was,฀ of฀course,฀the฀dominant฀viewpoint฀of฀the฀Rockefeller฀philanthropies,฀ and฀most฀anthropologists฀employed฀by฀the฀government฀had฀already฀ participated฀in฀Rockefeller-funded฀projects.” The฀more฀visible฀anthropologists,฀however,฀were฀those฀“travelers”฀who฀ did฀research฀in฀the฀peripheries.฀Locally฀employed฀anthropologists฀doing฀ applied฀anthropology฀and฀“native”฀anthropologists฀from฀the฀periphery฀ were฀less฀mobile฀and฀consequently฀less฀visible.฀In฀this฀sense,฀and฀from฀ the฀perspective฀of฀the฀periphery,฀a฀kind฀of฀unity฀existed:฀“international฀ anthropology”฀was฀consolidated฀in฀different฀metropolitan฀centers.฀In฀ most฀cases,฀however,฀this฀view฀was฀partial,฀because฀“nation-building”฀ practices—if฀ perceived฀ at฀ all—were฀ not฀ defined฀ as฀ belonging฀ to฀ the฀ international฀core฀of฀social฀anthropology. Different฀ histories฀ of฀ anthropology฀ have฀ tended฀ to฀ reproduce฀ this฀ general฀ pattern.฀ Let฀ me฀ give฀ some฀ examples.฀ In฀ Thomas฀ H.฀ Eriksen฀ and฀ Finn฀ S.฀ Nielsen’s฀ book฀ on฀ the฀ history฀ of฀ anthropology฀ (2001),฀ the฀ focus฀ is฀ on฀ the฀ production฀ and฀ circulation฀ of฀ ideas฀ and฀ schools฀ of฀thought฀of฀the฀intellectual฀centers,฀specifically฀those฀representing฀ the฀Euro-American฀traditions.฀The฀anthropologies฀of฀the฀peripheries— Mexico,฀Brazil,฀India,฀and฀even฀the฀Netherlands฀and฀Scandinavia—are฀ mentioned฀as฀belonging฀to฀the฀expansive฀moment.฀But฀because฀they฀ never฀developed฀into฀strong฀and฀powerful฀centers,฀they฀are฀seen฀as฀contributing฀to฀the฀continuous฀process฀of฀centralization฀of฀the฀discipline฀ (Eriksen฀and฀Nielsen฀2001:฀109). Similarly,฀in฀the฀case฀of฀France,฀the฀role฀given฀to฀the฀founding฀fathers,฀ Durkheim฀and฀Mauss,฀is฀central.฀Arnold฀van฀Gennep,฀who,฀in฀addition฀ to฀his฀great฀theoretical฀contribution฀to฀the฀analysis฀of฀rites฀of฀passage,฀ also฀ developed฀ the฀ study฀ of฀ French฀ rural฀ communities,฀ is฀ presented฀ as฀a฀marginal฀and฀innovative฀scholar฀who฀invented฀“anthropology฀at฀ home”฀(Eriksen฀and฀Nielsen฀2001:฀48).฀The฀history฀of฀this฀branch฀of฀ anthropology฀in฀France฀is฀left฀outside฀the฀scope฀of฀the฀authors’฀larger฀ historical฀enterprise—international฀anthropology—as฀well฀as฀of฀other฀

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nation-building฀ anthropologies.฀ The฀ international฀ history฀ is,฀ above฀ all,฀the฀confluence฀over฀time฀of฀French฀sociology,฀American฀cultural฀ anthropology,฀and฀British฀social฀anthropology,฀and฀their฀influences฀and฀ historical฀ramifications.฀What฀is฀consistently฀missing฀is฀a฀more฀precise฀ analysis฀of฀the฀new฀center-periphery฀relationships฀that฀developed฀when฀ anthropology฀was฀internationalized. Similar฀problems฀can฀be฀found฀in฀Robert฀Layton’s฀(1997)฀anthropological฀survey.฀He฀sees฀the฀development฀of฀anthropological฀theory— from฀functionalism฀and฀structuralism฀through฀interaction฀perspectives,฀ Marxism,฀socioecology,฀and฀postmodernism—as฀having฀produced฀ideas฀ and฀concepts฀that฀impinged฀upon฀anthropology,฀but฀he฀does฀not฀trace฀ the฀history฀of฀those฀impingements฀in฀full.฀Durkheim฀and฀Mauss฀are฀ central฀figures฀for฀Layton฀in฀shaping฀French฀and฀world฀anthropology,฀ and฀of฀course฀Lévi-Strauss฀is฀a฀determinant฀thinker฀behind฀structuralism.฀ He฀does฀not฀mention฀Louis฀Dumont฀at฀all,฀however,฀and฀he฀notes฀van฀ Gennep฀only฀in฀connection฀with฀Victor฀Turner’s฀ritual฀analysis฀(1997:฀ 205).฀In฀other฀words,฀the฀complex฀institutional฀histories฀are฀again฀left฀ out.฀One฀feels฀that฀abstract฀ideas฀and฀concepts฀have฀been฀crystallized฀ into฀models฀and,฀in฀this฀way,฀condition฀the฀description฀of฀social฀systems฀ and฀concrete฀societies. Alan฀Barnard’s฀History฀and฀Theory฀in฀Anthropology฀(2000)฀reproduces,฀in฀ some฀ways,฀Layton’s฀outline.฀Barnard฀devotes฀chapters฀to฀each฀school฀of฀ thought:฀diffusionism,฀functionalism,฀action-centered฀models,฀Marxism,฀ structuralism฀and฀cognitive฀science,฀poststructuralism฀and฀postmodernism.฀Durkheim฀and฀Mauss,฀as฀well฀as฀Lévi-Strauss,฀are฀again฀at฀the฀ center฀of฀theoretical฀developments฀and฀French฀world฀influence.฀Van฀ Gennep฀is฀presented฀as฀a฀precursor฀to฀both฀Turner’s฀and฀the฀Manchester฀ school’s฀approaches฀to฀understanding฀rituals฀and฀social฀processes.฀And฀ in฀this฀case,฀Dumont฀has฀his฀place฀as฀a฀producer฀of฀a฀“seminal,฀regional-฀ structural฀understanding฀of฀social฀hierarchy฀in฀India.”฀Barnard฀observes฀ that฀ “[Dumont’s]฀ work฀ has฀ had฀ its฀ followers,฀ and฀ its฀ critics,฀ in฀ all฀ countries฀in฀which฀the฀study฀of฀the฀Indian฀subcontinent฀is฀a฀particular฀ focus”฀(2000:฀136). In฀ all฀ three฀ books,฀ in฀ discussions฀ of฀ Marxism฀ and฀ its฀ variants,฀ the฀ authors฀justifiably฀highlight฀the฀roles฀of฀French฀anthropologists฀such฀ as฀ Godelier฀ and฀ Meillassoux.฀ Thus,฀ with฀ some฀ minor฀ variations,฀ the฀ dominant฀ narrative฀ of฀ the฀ course฀ of฀ French฀ anthropology฀ defines฀ a฀ core฀of฀thinkers฀who,฀in฀different฀historical฀periods,฀were฀able฀to฀build฀ theories฀for฀understanding฀culture฀and฀society฀in฀exotic฀contexts.฀Their฀ importance฀ is฀ measured฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ the฀ force฀ of฀ their฀ ideas฀ and,฀ in฀ some฀cases,฀their฀empirical฀findings.฀A฀number฀of฀other฀relevant฀French฀

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thinkers฀and฀anthropologists,฀as฀well฀as฀the฀societies฀they฀studied,฀are฀ not฀included฀in฀the฀dominant฀trend.฀It฀is฀interesting฀that฀the฀distinction฀ between฀“empire฀building”฀and฀“nation฀building”฀is฀not฀an฀important฀ variable฀for฀these฀authors. In฀the฀case฀of฀France,฀the฀narrow฀emphasis฀on฀the฀ethnographic฀and฀ theoretical฀contributions฀of฀Durkheim฀and฀Mauss,฀as฀well฀as฀Lévi-Strauss฀ and฀Dumont,฀who฀all฀conducted฀fieldwork฀and฀research฀outside฀the฀ frontiers฀of฀the฀French฀empire,฀precludes฀a฀systematic฀consideration฀of฀ French฀colonial฀anthropology.฀This฀“tradition”฀has฀been฀unanimously฀ defined฀as฀belonging฀to฀the฀international฀core฀of฀the฀discipline฀and฀has฀ extended฀ its฀ influence฀ to฀ other฀ centers฀ and฀ most฀ of฀ the฀ peripheries.฀ The฀books฀I฀have฀briefly฀discussed,฀without฀explicitly฀aiming฀to฀do฀so,฀ create฀not฀only฀international฀centers฀but฀also฀a฀heterogeneous฀periphery฀ composed฀of฀people฀and฀institutions฀even฀inside฀the฀centers฀themselves.฀ These฀books฀essentially฀concur฀with฀the฀judgment฀of฀Marc฀Abélès฀when฀ he฀writes: Until฀ the฀ 1970s฀ the฀ most฀ noticeable฀ contributions฀ to฀ anthropological฀ knowledge฀ in฀ France฀ were฀ produced฀ by฀ anthropologists฀ like฀ Claude฀ Lévi-Strauss,฀Dumont,฀and฀Balandier—an฀Americanist,฀a฀South฀Asianist,฀ and฀ an฀ Africanist,฀ respectively.฀ The฀ Institute฀ of฀ Ethnology,฀ the฀ first฀ such฀ institution฀ in฀ France,฀ was฀ created฀ before฀ World฀ War฀ I.฀ Until฀ the฀ end฀of฀the฀1950s,฀other฀anthropological฀research฀centers฀did฀not฀exist,฀ and฀ anthropology฀ was฀ taught฀ only฀ at฀ the฀ Sorbonne฀ for฀ postgraduate฀ students.฀ The฀ creation฀ of฀ the฀ Laboratoire฀ d’Anthropologie฀ Sociale฀ by฀ Lévi-Strauss,฀and฀a฀few฀years฀later฀of฀the฀Laboratory฀of฀Ethnology฀and฀ Comparative฀ Sociology฀ in฀ Nanterre,฀ and฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ cultural฀ area฀centers฀in฀the฀École฀des฀Hautes฀Études฀en฀Sciences฀Sociales,฀such฀as฀ the฀Center฀for฀African฀Studies฀and฀the฀Center฀for฀Indian฀Studies,฀have฀ played฀ an฀ important฀ role฀ in฀ the฀ institutionalization฀ of฀ anthropology.฀ (Abélès฀1999:฀404)

Stocking฀ (1982:฀ 175)฀ remarked฀ that฀ the฀ historical฀ emergence฀ and฀ consolidation฀ of฀ “international฀ anthropology”฀ was฀ essentially฀ EuroAmerican.฀According฀to฀him,฀what฀was฀missing฀from฀this฀process฀was฀ a฀ new฀ way฀ of฀ conceiving฀ of฀ the฀ center-periphery฀ relationships฀ that฀ developed฀“in฀the฀very฀same฀period฀that฀‘international฀anthropology’฀ emerged.”฀Given฀that฀one฀of฀the฀main฀objectives฀of฀the฀present฀book฀is฀ to฀critically฀examine฀the฀international฀dissemination฀of฀anthropology฀ within฀ and฀ across฀ national฀ power฀ fields฀ and฀ the฀ processes฀ through฀ which฀this฀dissemination฀takes฀place,฀in฀the฀rest฀of฀this฀chapter฀I฀look฀

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at฀ France฀ as฀ a฀ specific฀ case฀ for฀ discussing฀ the฀ historical฀ complexities฀ of฀ the฀ formation฀ of฀ “centers”฀ and฀ “peripheries”฀ in฀ our฀ discipline.฀ French฀colonial฀anthropology,฀French฀ethnology฀(the฀study฀of฀France),฀ and฀ Dumont’s฀ influence฀ outside฀ the฀ Indian฀ subcontinent฀ constitute฀ “vignettes”฀presented฀for฀the฀purpose฀of฀getting฀a฀more฀nuanced฀picture฀ of฀trends,฀patterns,฀and฀power฀inside฀France.

French฀Colonial฀Anthropology฀and฀the฀Travels฀of฀ Michel฀Leiris The฀institutionalization฀of฀French฀anthropology฀can฀be฀dated฀back฀to฀ the฀opening฀of฀the฀Institute฀of฀Ethnology฀at฀the฀University฀of฀Paris฀in฀ 1925.฀Created฀by฀Mauss,฀Rivet,฀and฀Lévy-Bruhl,฀its฀main฀aim฀was฀to฀ serve฀the฀colonial฀French฀power,฀which฀at฀that฀time฀had฀a฀very฀marginal฀ interest฀in฀the฀discipline.฀In฀the฀text฀specifying฀the฀aims฀of฀the฀new฀ institution,฀presented฀by฀Lucien฀Lévy-Bruhl฀to฀the฀University฀of฀Paris,฀ we฀read: When฀in฀a฀colony฀there฀are฀populations฀belonging฀to฀an฀inferior฀civilization฀or฀very฀different฀from฀us,฀good฀ethnologists฀can฀be฀as฀necessary฀as฀ good฀engineers,฀good฀experts฀in฀forestry,฀or฀good฀physicians฀.฀.฀.฀In฀order฀ to฀extract฀all฀the฀economic฀value฀of฀the฀colonies฀in฀the฀most฀complete฀ and฀efficient฀way,฀everyone฀recognizes฀that฀not฀only฀capital฀is฀needed.฀ It฀ is฀ necessary฀ to฀ have฀ scientists,฀ technicians,฀ capable฀ of฀ producing฀ a฀ methodical฀inventory฀of฀the฀natural฀resources,฀indicating฀how฀to฀exploit฀ them฀in฀the฀best฀way.฀The฀first฀and฀most฀central฀of฀the฀natural฀resources฀ is฀the฀indigenous฀population,฀because฀the฀other฀resources฀are฀dependent฀ on฀it,฀above฀all฀in฀tropical฀regions.฀Does฀not฀there฀exist฀a฀capital฀interest฀ in฀studying฀it,฀in฀a฀methodical฀way,฀in฀order฀to฀get฀an฀exact฀and฀deep฀ knowledge฀of฀its฀languages,฀religions,฀and฀social฀organization,฀which฀it฀ is฀not฀prudent฀to฀destroy฀irresponsibly?฀(Lévy-Bruhl฀1925:฀1)

Lévy-Bruhl’s฀arguments฀were฀so฀convincing฀that,฀according฀to฀Benoît฀de฀ L’Estoile฀(2000:฀295),฀the฀institute฀began฀to฀receive฀continuous฀financial฀ support฀ from฀ the฀ colonial฀ administration.฀ Colonization฀ was฀ seen฀ as฀ a฀ marker฀ for฀ entering฀ into฀ a฀ more฀ scientific฀ epoch.฀ Jules฀ Brévié,฀ the฀ governor฀of฀French฀West฀Africa฀from฀1931฀to฀1937,฀played฀a฀key฀role฀in฀ creating฀the฀French฀Institute฀of฀Black฀Africa฀in฀1937,฀and฀then,฀in฀1942,฀ the฀Bureau฀of฀Colonial฀Scientific฀Research.฀This฀later฀became฀ORSTOM฀ and฀is฀now฀the฀Institute฀of฀Development฀Research.฀L’Estoile฀sees฀this฀ confluence฀as฀proof฀of฀an฀alliance฀between฀the฀colonial฀administration฀

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and฀the฀ethnologists฀working฀in฀French฀Africa.฀The฀main฀aim,฀from฀the฀ point฀of฀view฀of฀the฀colonial฀bureaucracy,฀was฀the฀implementation฀of฀a฀ rational,฀scientifically฀based฀colonization฀(L’Estoile฀2000:฀295). Among฀the฀demands฀placed฀upon฀the฀ethnologists฀were฀to฀produce฀ territorial฀identifications฀of฀races฀and฀to฀write฀general฀descriptions฀of฀ their฀cultural฀patterns.฀The฀production฀of฀ethnic฀maps฀and฀inventories฀ (languages,฀places,฀numbers)฀was฀seen฀as฀an฀urgent฀task.฀A฀number฀of฀ studies฀were฀initiated฀in฀order฀to฀solve฀practical฀problems฀created฀by฀the฀ existence฀of฀such฀a฀diversity฀of฀local฀languages฀and฀sociocultural฀systems.฀ In฀the฀1930s,฀the฀colonial฀administration฀issued฀a฀series฀of฀ethnic฀regional฀ maps฀of฀French฀Africa฀with฀the฀explicit฀objective฀of฀defining฀the฀limits฀ of฀each฀ethnic฀group,฀its฀material฀culture,฀its฀political฀organization,฀and฀ its฀religious฀beliefs.฀These฀ethnographic฀and฀geographic฀data฀were฀of฀ great฀interest฀for฀the฀politics฀of฀the฀colonial฀administration฀(Chombart฀ de฀Lauwe฀and฀Deboudaud฀1939).฀The฀roles฀of฀colonial฀administrator฀ and฀ethnographer฀were฀in฀many฀cases฀interchangeable. The฀lives฀and฀works฀of฀Maurice฀Delafosse฀(1870–1926),฀Louis฀Tauxier฀ (1871–1942)฀and฀Henri฀Labouret฀(1878–1958)฀are฀examples฀of฀the฀way฀ ethnographic฀work฀could฀be฀integrated฀into฀both฀colonial฀administration฀ and฀academic฀life฀(see฀Gaillard฀1997;฀L’Estoile฀2001).฀Their฀scientific฀ practice฀was฀defined฀as฀an฀integral฀part฀of฀French฀national฀interests฀as฀ well฀as฀of฀policies฀regarding฀colonial฀domination฀in฀Africa.฀However,฀ as฀their฀active฀participation฀in฀the฀London-based฀International฀Africa฀ Institute฀and฀the฀journal฀Africa฀proves,฀they฀were฀also฀internationally฀ oriented.฀Although฀these฀men฀were฀important฀actors฀in฀the฀expansive฀ moment฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ in฀ the฀ 1920s฀ and฀ 1930s,฀ the฀ role฀ given฀ to฀ them฀ in฀ general฀ histories฀ of฀ anthropology฀ is฀ marginal.฀ In฀ contrast,฀ contemporary฀British฀Africanists฀have฀a฀central฀place.฀This฀is฀due฀to฀ many฀factors. First,฀the฀British฀Africanists฀codified฀a฀British฀tradition฀of฀fieldwork฀ and฀ defined฀ tools฀ such฀ as฀ the฀ genealogical฀ method,฀ household฀ and฀ sibling฀surveys,฀marital฀histories,฀spatial฀analysis,฀analysis฀of฀kin฀terms,฀ and฀ extended-case฀ analysis.฀ We฀ have฀ no฀ French฀ school฀ of฀ fieldwork฀ that฀can฀be฀defined฀with฀such฀precision.฀The฀French฀were฀practitioners฀ without฀generating฀models฀and฀concrete฀techniques.฀Moreover,฀British฀ anthropologists฀articulated฀ethnography฀with฀theoretical฀preoccupations฀ and฀ models.฀ They฀ developed฀ a฀ special฀ focus฀ on฀ understanding฀ the฀ way฀societies฀worked฀in฀practice—hence,฀anthropology฀became฀social฀ anthropology.฀They฀invented฀a฀naturalist฀and฀objective฀narrative;฀their฀ monographs฀were฀archetypal฀of฀a฀modern฀discipline,฀and฀their฀work฀ contributed฀to฀core฀problems฀in฀anthropology—kinship฀and฀marriage,฀

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law฀ and฀ religion.฀ Finally,฀ they฀ created฀ departments฀ and฀ university฀ institutions฀ detached฀ from฀ the฀ colonial฀ administration฀ and฀ became฀ international฀militants฀traveling฀to฀distant฀places฀with฀their฀message฀ and฀ passion,฀ arguing฀ comparison฀ and฀ holism.฀ The฀ colonial฀ French฀ anthropologists,฀in฀contrast,฀remained฀important฀members฀of฀a฀local฀ tradition,฀in฀spite฀of฀their฀international฀links.฀They฀were฀also฀key฀figures฀ in฀increasing฀ethnographic฀knowledge,฀but฀their฀“sin”฀was฀their฀lack฀of฀ general฀contributions฀to฀the฀discipline. There฀were฀two฀exceptions:฀Marcel฀Griaule฀(1898–1956)฀and฀Michel฀ Leiris฀ (1901–90).฀ Let฀ me฀ briefly฀ explore฀ their฀ contributions฀ to฀ a฀ decentered฀anthropology. Like฀Lévi-Strauss,฀Métraux,฀Dumont,฀Bastide,฀and฀many฀other฀anthropologists฀who฀followed฀Mauss’s฀courses฀at฀the฀Institute฀of฀Ethnology฀ before฀World฀War฀II,฀Griaule฀and฀Leiris฀were฀trained฀by฀Mauss.฀They฀were฀ not฀intellectual฀products฀of฀the฀French฀colonial฀administration,฀and฀in฀ different฀ways฀they฀became฀critical฀of฀colonial฀policies.฀In฀1931฀Griaule฀ led฀the฀famous฀Dakar-Djibouti฀expedition,฀of฀which฀Leiris฀was฀a฀member.฀ They฀belonged฀to฀the฀great฀tradition฀of฀travelers฀and฀explorers,฀taking฀ part฀in฀numerous฀expeditions.฀Their฀academic฀careers฀in฀France฀were฀ accomplished,฀and฀they฀gained฀great฀recognition.฀In฀1943฀Griaule฀was฀ appointed฀the฀first฀professor฀of฀“general฀ethnology”฀at฀the฀Sorbonne,฀ and฀his฀ethnographic฀work฀among฀the฀Dogon฀of฀Mali฀had฀an฀important฀ effect฀ in฀ France.฀ He฀ created฀ his฀ own฀ school฀ (or฀ tradition)฀ in฀ African฀ studies฀with฀people฀like฀Germaine฀Dieterlen฀and฀Solange฀de฀Ganay.฀From฀ 1934฀Leiris฀was฀head฀of฀the฀Department฀of฀Black฀Africa฀at฀the฀Museum฀ of฀Man,฀and฀in฀1943฀he฀joined฀the฀Centre฀Nationale฀de฀la฀Recherche฀ Scientifique,฀later,฀in฀1967,฀becoming฀its฀director฀of฀research.฀But฀as฀we฀ saw฀in฀the฀analysis฀of฀the฀three฀published฀histories฀of฀anthropology฀ and฀even฀in฀the฀lengthy฀quotation฀from฀Abélès,฀neither฀Griaule฀nor฀ Leiris฀ever฀became฀a฀central฀figure฀or฀was฀considered฀part฀of฀the฀core฀ of฀international฀French฀anthropology,฀which฀remained฀dominated฀by฀ figures฀such฀as฀Lévi-Strauss฀and฀Dumont.฀Why? James฀Clifford฀(1988),฀in฀his฀discussion฀of฀the฀complex฀interrelations฀ between฀ethnography,฀fieldwork,฀literature,฀travel,฀and฀art,฀gave฀new฀ life฀to฀the฀works฀of฀Griaule฀and฀Leiris.฀I฀agree฀with฀the฀way฀Clifford฀characterized฀Griaule’s฀contribution฀to฀anthropology.฀Referring฀to฀Griaule’s฀ ethnographic฀pieces฀on฀the฀Dogon,฀Clifford฀wrote:฀“One฀hears,฀as฀it฀ were,฀two฀full฀chords฀of฀a฀Dogon฀symphony:฀a฀mythic฀explanation฀of฀ the฀ cosmos฀ and฀ a฀ native฀ theory฀ of฀ language฀ and฀ expressivity.฀ More฀ than฀just฀native฀explanations฀or฀theories,฀these฀superb฀compendiums฀ present฀themselves฀as฀coherent฀arts฀of฀life,฀sociomythic฀landscapes฀of฀

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physiology฀and฀personality,฀symbolic฀networks฀incarnate฀in฀an฀infinity฀ of฀daily฀details”฀(1988:฀58). We฀can฀accept฀that฀Griaule’s฀dialogic฀method฀created฀doubts฀regarding฀ the฀validity฀of฀his฀findings.฀Clifford฀defined฀Griaule’s฀masterpieces฀(Le฀ renard฀pâle฀and฀Ethnologie฀et฀langage)฀as elaborated฀inventions฀authored฀by฀a฀variety฀of฀subjects,฀European฀and฀ African.฀ These฀ compendiums฀ do฀ not฀ represent฀ the฀ way฀ “the฀ Dogon”฀ think:฀both฀their฀enormous฀complexity฀and฀the฀absence฀of฀female฀informants฀cast฀doubt฀on฀any฀such฀totalizing฀claim.฀Nor฀is฀their฀“deep”฀ knowledge฀an฀interpretative฀key฀to฀Dogon฀reality฀for฀anyone฀beyond฀the฀ ethnographer฀and฀a฀small฀number฀of฀native฀“intellectuals.”฀To฀say฀that฀ these฀Dogon฀truths฀are฀specific฀inventions฀(rather฀than฀parts฀or฀distortions฀of฀“Dogon฀culture”),฀however,฀is฀to฀take฀them฀seriously฀as฀textual฀ constructions,฀avoiding฀both฀celebration฀and฀polemic.฀(1988:฀60)

Many฀of฀the฀criticisms฀of฀Griaule’s฀work฀by฀British฀social฀anthropologists฀have฀pointed฀out฀his฀extreme฀dependence฀on฀translators,฀with฀ whom฀he฀had฀life-long฀relations,฀and฀the฀fact฀that฀he฀gave฀his฀total฀ confidence฀to฀a฀small฀number฀of฀key฀informants฀(Douglas฀1967;฀Richard฀ 1967).฀It฀has฀been฀argued฀that฀always฀missing฀in฀his฀ethnography฀were฀ daily฀ life,฀ a฀ clear฀ definition฀ of฀ social฀ contexts,฀ and฀ a฀ description฀ of฀ politics฀and฀power฀mechanisms฀in฀Dogon฀society.฀Clifford฀saw฀these฀ critiques฀as฀pertinent,฀especially฀with฀regard฀to฀the฀problematic฀role฀of฀ the฀Dogon฀themselves฀as฀actors฀in฀Griaule’s฀ethnographic฀project. The฀most฀authoritative฀critique฀sprang฀from฀Walter฀van฀Beek’s฀restudy฀ of฀ the฀ Dogon฀ (1991).฀ He฀ demonstrated฀ that฀ the฀ texts฀ produced฀ by฀ Griaule฀ were฀ impossible฀ to฀ recognize฀ in฀ the฀ field฀ and฀ that฀ Griaule’s฀ ethnography฀neither฀offered฀productive฀insights฀into฀Dogon฀thinking฀ nor฀provided฀useful฀guidance฀for฀the฀reproduction฀of฀Dogon฀culture.฀The฀ cultural฀constructs฀Griaule฀presented฀were฀unrecognizable฀to฀both฀the฀ anthropologist฀and฀the฀Dogon฀themselves.฀When฀van฀Beek฀presented฀his฀ Dogon฀informants฀with฀elements฀of฀Griaule’s฀cosmological฀descriptions,฀ they฀ did฀ not฀ recognize฀ them฀ as฀ a฀ meaningful฀ part฀ of฀ their฀ thinking฀ and฀ way฀ of฀ life.฀ Claude฀ Meillassoux’s฀ response฀ to฀ van฀ Beek’s฀ article,฀ published฀with฀it฀in฀Current฀Anthropology,฀welcomed฀the฀critique฀as฀much฀ needed฀ in฀ the฀ tradition฀ initiated฀ by฀ Griaule,฀ which฀ emphasized฀ the฀ power฀of฀“selected฀informants฀through฀whom฀a฀corpus฀was฀constructed฀ that฀seems,฀on฀examination,฀not฀so฀much฀a฀source฀of฀discovery฀to฀the฀ researchers฀as฀one฀of฀surprise฀to฀the฀investigated”฀(1991:฀163). In฀contrast฀to฀Griaule’s฀work,฀Leiris’s฀L’Afrique฀fantôme฀(1934)—a฀book฀ never฀translated฀into฀English฀or฀any฀other฀important฀anthropological฀

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language—can฀be฀seen฀as฀a฀central฀account฀of฀the฀Dakar-Djibouti฀and,฀ prior฀to฀Lévi-Strauss’s฀Tristes฀tropiques฀(1955),฀a฀masterpiece฀of฀ethnography,฀ diary,฀ and฀ intimate฀ reflections.฀ A฀ novelist฀ narrates฀ a฀ plot.฀ A฀ poet฀writes฀verses.฀An฀ethnographer฀describes฀practices.฀In฀the฀1930s฀ Leiris฀ already฀ mixed฀ autobiography฀ with฀ anthropology฀ and฀ obliged฀ his฀ readers฀ and฀ colleagues฀ to฀ think฀ about฀ the฀ special฀ relationship฀ between฀writing฀(écriture)฀and฀ethnography฀and,฀perhaps฀more฀generally,฀ about฀the฀function฀of฀writing฀in฀the฀empirical฀field฀of฀social฀practices.฀ Leiris฀ had฀ one฀ foot฀ in฀ anthropology฀ and฀ another฀ in฀ literature,฀ and฀ throughout฀his฀life฀he฀maintained฀close฀personal฀relations฀with฀artists,฀ philosophers,฀and฀other฀thinkers.฀Indeed,฀it฀was฀surrealism฀that฀brought฀ him฀to฀anthropology.฀Leiris฀wrote฀that฀“it฀was฀surrealism,฀with฀which฀ I฀was฀involved฀for฀four฀years฀(1925–29)฀and฀which฀represented฀for฀me฀ the฀rebellion฀against฀the฀so-called฀rationalism฀of฀Western฀society฀and฀ therefore฀an฀intellectual฀curiosity฀about฀peoples฀who฀represented฀more฀ or฀less฀what฀Lévy-Bruhl฀called฀at฀the฀time฀mentalité฀primitive.฀It’s฀quite฀ simple”฀(Price฀and฀Jamin฀1988:฀158). He฀confessed฀that฀he฀wrote฀L’Afrique฀fantôme฀to฀himself฀in฀an฀experimental฀mood:฀“I’d฀had฀my฀fill฀of฀literature,฀especially฀surrealism;฀I’d฀ had฀ more฀ than฀ I฀ could฀ take฀ of฀ Western฀ civilization.฀ I฀ wanted฀ to฀ see฀ what฀would฀result฀when฀I฀forced฀myself฀to฀record฀virtually฀everything฀ that฀happened฀around฀me฀and฀everything฀that฀went฀through฀my฀head;฀ that฀was฀essentially฀the฀idea฀behind฀L’Afrique฀fantôme”฀(Price฀and฀Jamin฀ 1988:฀171). He฀ never฀ showed฀ the฀ proofs฀ for฀ the฀ book฀ to฀ Griaule,฀ because฀ “he฀ was฀a฀completely฀different฀kind฀of฀person฀from฀me,฀and฀being฀opposed฀ to฀the฀spirit฀of฀the฀book฀in฀spite฀of฀our฀camaraderie,฀he฀would฀have฀ asked฀me฀to฀cut฀it฀in฀ways฀that฀I฀wasn’t฀willing฀to฀accept.฀So฀I฀decided฀ not฀to฀show฀him฀the฀proofs.฀He฀was฀absolutely฀furious฀when฀the฀book฀ came฀out;฀he฀felt฀that฀I฀had฀compromised฀future฀field฀studies,฀and฀so฀ forth”฀(Price฀and฀Jamin฀1988:฀171).฀Even฀Mauss฀reacted฀against฀Leiris’s฀ travelogue฀approach฀and฀reprimanded฀him,฀although฀not฀as฀strongly฀ as฀Griaule.฀Leiris฀acknowledged฀that฀his฀relationship฀with฀Griaule฀“was฀ the฀only฀one฀that฀was฀spoiled฀by฀L’Afrique฀fantôme”฀(Price฀and฀Jamin฀ 1988:฀171). L’Afrique฀fantôme฀is฀a฀powerful฀book฀precisely฀because฀it฀is฀centered฀ on฀ the฀ explicit฀ recognition฀ of฀ the฀ subjectivity฀ of฀ the฀ ethnographer.฀ This฀fact฀places฀Leiris’s฀work฀in฀a฀kind฀of฀premonitory฀position฀with฀ respect฀ to฀ the฀ discussions฀ and฀ critiques฀ of฀ the฀ traditional฀ naturalist฀ narratives฀of฀classical฀anthropology฀that฀took฀place฀in฀the฀1980s.฀This,฀ in฀some฀ways,฀explains฀Clifford’s฀recuperation฀of฀his฀historical฀role฀in฀

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the฀discipline฀(see฀Cogez฀2000).฀What฀is฀surprising฀in฀reading฀Leiris’s฀ book฀today฀are฀the฀intermittent฀flashes฀of฀his฀intense฀participation฀with฀ and฀ commitment฀ to฀ the฀ actors฀ he฀ observed฀ and฀ the฀ frequent฀ bouts฀ of฀ tedium฀ that฀ afflicted฀ him฀ during฀ the฀ expedition.฀ But฀ as฀ Michele฀ Richman฀(1992:฀93)฀correctly฀observed,฀he฀was฀also฀“haunted฀by฀the฀ formidable฀ghosts฀of฀his฀own฀past,฀and฀the฀fear฀that฀he฀[would]฀never฀ penetrate฀anything฀in฀depth.” Throughout฀the฀book,฀Leiris’s฀presentations฀of฀the฀limitations฀of฀an฀ impotent฀observer฀and฀the฀necessity฀of฀observing฀the฀rules฀of฀detachment฀ imposed฀on฀the฀ethnographer฀are฀accompanied฀by฀rare฀moments฀of฀ intense,฀emphatic฀identification฀with฀rituals,฀events,฀and฀actors.฀Leiris฀ equates฀these฀moments฀with฀a฀kind฀of฀poetic฀possession.฀The฀attraction฀ of฀moments฀parfaits฀and฀a฀feeling฀of฀being฀unable฀to฀overcome฀them฀is฀ present฀in฀several฀passages.฀Clifford฀stressed฀the฀“smooth฀ethnographic฀ story”฀ that฀ undermines฀ “the฀ assumption฀ that฀ self฀ and฀ other฀ can฀ be฀ gathered฀in฀a฀stable฀narrative฀coherence”฀(1988:฀173).฀However,฀I฀agree฀ with฀ the฀ way฀ Marc฀ Blanchard฀ (1992:฀ 111)฀ summarized฀ Leiris’s฀ style฀ of฀writing:฀“Of฀all฀writers฀in฀the฀French฀language฀Leiris฀is฀one฀of฀the฀ more฀skilled฀at฀describing฀the฀world฀of฀persons฀and฀objects฀in฀term฀of฀ practices—actions฀ performed฀ more฀ than฀ once,฀ often฀ every฀ day,฀ in฀ a฀ social฀context฀with฀the฀purpose฀of฀modifying฀relations฀between฀subjects฀ and฀objects฀with฀significant฀advantage.” Throughout฀his฀career฀Leiris฀combined฀literary฀writing,฀autobiographical฀ journals,฀professional฀monographs,฀and฀essays฀against฀the฀Algerian฀War฀ and฀colonialism฀in฀general.฀He฀was฀a฀hybrid฀in฀a฀discipline฀that฀was฀ becoming฀increasingly฀professionalized.฀He฀was฀difficult฀to฀classify,฀he฀ created฀no฀school฀in฀anthropology,฀and฀his฀theoretical฀contributions฀ were฀less฀evident฀than฀his฀“literary฀mood.”฀He฀always฀believed฀in฀the฀ importance฀of฀the฀subjective฀element,฀but฀he฀did฀not฀deny฀the฀relevance฀ of฀the฀external฀world฀or฀the฀objectivity฀of฀the฀exterior.฀He฀assumed฀that฀ the฀ most฀ important฀ tool฀ of฀ ethnography฀ was฀ the฀ description฀ of฀ the฀ other฀and฀not฀just฀of฀oneself:฀“You฀introduce฀yourself฀into฀the฀scene฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ allow฀ the฀ calcul฀ de฀ l’erreur฀ [calculation฀ of฀ error],”฀ he฀ said฀ in฀an฀interview฀(Price฀and฀Jamin฀1988:฀172).฀He฀said฀that฀subjectivity฀ “always฀is฀present,฀so฀it’s฀better฀to฀recognize฀it฀openly฀than฀to฀deal฀with฀ it฀secretly฀.฀.฀.฀I฀will฀make฀a฀concession฀to฀absolute฀objectivity฀and฀state฀ that฀that฀is฀what฀it฀would฀be฀most฀desirable฀to฀end฀up฀with,฀but฀it฀just฀ isn’t฀possible:฀the฀subjectivity฀is฀always฀there”฀(Price฀and฀Jamin฀1988:฀ 173).฀In฀the฀same฀interview฀he฀acknowledged฀having฀been฀marginal฀ to฀the฀different฀cores฀of฀French฀anthropology฀during฀his฀academic฀life฀ (Price฀and฀Jamin฀1988:฀171).

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Leiris’s฀travel฀accounts฀influenced฀other฀great฀travelers฀in฀our฀discipline.฀ Lévi-Strauss’s฀ Tristes฀ tropiques฀ can฀ be฀ understood฀ better฀ in฀ relation฀ to฀ L’Afrique฀ fantôme.฀ This฀ connection฀ is฀ seldom฀ made฀ in฀ the฀ general฀ teaching฀of฀anthropology.฀Leiris’s฀travels฀and฀writings฀resonate฀in฀LéviStrauss’s฀work฀because฀they฀belong฀to฀the฀same฀discursive฀formation:฀ a฀ combination฀ of฀ heterogeneous฀ approaches—philosophy,฀ dreams,฀ personal฀lives—mixed฀with฀the฀techniques฀of฀an฀anthropologist,฀overall฀ producing฀a฀redefinition฀of฀the฀relation฀between฀language฀and฀reference.฀ In฀Lévi-Strauss,฀considerations฀of฀geography฀and฀geology฀are฀combined฀ with฀ elements฀ of฀ autobiography,฀ whereas฀ in฀ Leiris’s฀ work฀ the฀ main฀ references฀ are฀ the฀ objects฀ and฀ events฀ being฀ classified฀ by฀ the฀ author.฀ Nobody฀would฀deny฀that฀both฀texts฀are฀“classic,”฀but฀they฀belong฀to฀ a฀late฀producer฀of฀theory,฀Lévi-Strauss,฀and฀to฀a฀convinced฀hybrid฀and฀ bricoleur,฀Leiris.฀Lévi-Strauss฀represents฀the฀dominant฀scientific฀tradition,฀ a฀ combination฀ of฀ universal฀ assumptions฀ and฀ models฀ demonstrated฀ through฀ethnographic฀comparison,฀and฀Leiris฀represents฀what฀we฀might฀ call฀the฀literary฀mood฀or฀a฀poetic฀approach฀to฀social฀reality.฀Lévi-Strauss฀ becomes฀a฀key฀figure฀in฀the฀center฀of฀anthropology฀par฀excellence,฀the฀ Laboratoire฀d’Anthropologie฀Sociale—the฀most฀important฀after฀World฀ War฀II—while฀Leiris฀maintains฀his฀position฀as฀a฀marginal฀anthropologist฀ in฀the฀French฀academic฀landscape.

La฀Tarasque฀and฀the฀Anthropology฀of฀France In฀ the฀ introduction฀ to฀ the฀ second฀ edition฀ of฀ La฀ Tarasque,฀ originally฀ published฀in฀1951,฀Louis฀Dumont฀expressed฀his฀satisfaction฀with฀the฀ re-edition฀of฀a฀book฀that฀he฀called฀a฀“petit฀ouvrage”฀(1988:฀3).฀He฀gave฀ two฀reasons฀why฀he฀decided฀to฀republish฀it฀without฀changes:฀first,฀he฀ believed฀a฀monograph฀must฀stand฀as฀it฀was฀conceived,฀and฀second,฀the฀ book฀could฀be฀seen฀as฀a฀contribution฀from฀“researchers฀and฀amateurs”฀ (chercheurs฀et฀curieux)฀doing฀the฀ethnography฀of฀France฀to฀the฀young฀ generation฀ of฀ anthropologists฀ then฀ doing฀ it฀ in฀ a฀ more฀ professional฀ way฀(1988:฀4).฀After฀World฀War฀II฀Dumont฀worked฀as฀a฀researcher฀at฀ the฀Museum฀of฀Popular฀Art฀and฀Tradition฀(Musée฀des฀arts฀et฀traditions฀ populaires),฀founded฀in฀1937.฀His฀fieldwork฀in฀Tarascon,฀Provence,฀was฀ guided฀by฀the฀idea฀of฀recording฀a฀popular฀religious฀tradition฀that฀was฀ being฀ threatened฀ by฀ modernization฀ and฀ social฀ change.฀ Moreover,฀ as฀ a฀ disciple฀ of฀ Mauss,฀ Dumont฀ adopted฀ “the฀ use฀ of฀ a฀ model฀ of฀ exotic฀ ethnology,฀making฀more฀sociological฀what฀until฀then฀was฀‘folklore’”฀ (1988:฀v).฀It฀was฀in฀this฀approach฀that฀he฀saw฀the฀reason฀for฀the฀survival฀ of฀the฀book.

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Thus฀Dumont฀found฀a฀kind฀of฀continuity฀between฀the฀anthropology฀ of฀France฀that฀he฀was฀practicing฀and฀contemporary฀studies฀of฀French฀ society฀in฀which฀researchers฀were฀concerned฀less฀with฀the฀disappearance฀ of฀traditions฀than฀with฀the฀complexities฀of฀modernity.฀In฀his฀words,฀ the฀ ethnology฀ of฀ France฀ was฀ transformed฀ into฀ an฀ “anthropology฀ at฀ home”฀in฀which฀systematic฀sociological฀theory฀replaced฀the฀dominant฀ folklorist฀descriptive฀approach.฀That฀van฀Gennep’s฀important฀work฀on฀ the฀ethnology฀of฀France฀was฀seen฀by฀Lévi-Strauss฀in฀1947฀as฀traditional฀ folklore฀(1947:฀519;฀see฀also฀Cuisinier฀and฀Segalen฀1986)฀did฀not฀stop฀ Dumont฀from฀showing฀his฀manuscript฀to฀van฀Gennep฀in฀order฀to฀get฀ comments฀and฀suggestions. La฀Tarasque฀is฀a฀complex฀and฀unorthodox฀monograph฀consisting฀of฀ ethnographic฀findings฀based฀on฀observations฀of฀the฀ritual฀of฀the฀feast฀ of฀the฀dragon฀in฀the฀village฀of฀Tarascon,฀a฀detailed฀oral฀history฀of฀its฀ legends,฀the฀results฀of฀exhaustive฀historical฀archival฀work,฀and฀a฀detailed฀ iconographic฀presentation.฀Dumont฀argued฀that฀this฀way฀of฀working฀ sprang฀from฀a฀Maussian฀perspective,฀in฀which฀social฀life฀always฀has฀a฀ direction฀and฀constitutes฀a฀totality฀that฀must฀be฀scrutinized฀in฀great฀ detail.฀According฀to฀him฀(1988:฀15),฀the฀study฀of฀the฀triangle฀of฀ritual,฀ legends,฀ and฀ iconography฀ made฀ this฀ possible.฀ The฀ confrontation฀ of฀ ritual฀and฀legends฀in฀the฀book฀and฀Dumont’s฀observations฀of฀contradictions฀and฀ambivalent฀meanings฀are฀rich.฀In฀this฀sense,฀Dumont฀wrote฀ a฀“modern”฀ethnography.฀His฀conclusions฀sound฀familiar:฀the฀ritual,฀ La฀Tarasque,฀is฀a฀profane฀emblem฀of฀the฀locality,฀through฀which฀the฀ social฀forces฀of฀the฀community฀are฀expressed,฀but฀at฀the฀same฀time฀it฀is฀ subordinated฀to฀the฀local฀saint฀and฀patronne,฀Sainte฀Marthe.฀In฀this฀sense,฀ the฀Tarasconian฀community฀reaffirms,฀through฀ritual,฀subordination฀ to฀an฀encompassing฀Christianity.฀Here฀we฀find฀an฀echo฀of฀the฀“other”฀ Dumont,฀the฀South฀Asianist,฀who฀later฀developed฀a฀theory฀in฀which฀ the฀ relations฀ between฀ parts฀ and฀ wholes฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ subordination,฀ domination,฀and฀encompassment฀were฀to฀be฀central. My฀main฀aim฀with฀this฀brief฀examination฀of฀La฀Tarasque฀is฀to฀contextualize฀ the฀ question฀ of฀ centers฀ and฀ peripheries฀ with฀ a฀ focus฀ on฀ the฀ anthropology฀of฀France฀and฀its฀internationalization.฀It฀is฀clear฀that฀the฀ rich฀tradition฀of฀studies฀of฀France฀by฀ethnologists,฀ethnographers,฀and฀ folklorists฀initiated฀before฀World฀War฀II฀remained฀“local”฀and฀was฀not฀ integrated฀into฀the฀creation฀of฀an฀international฀discipline฀in฀which฀the฀ “more฀exotic฀and฀extreme฀non-European฀others”฀were฀privileged฀(see฀ Abélès฀1999;฀Cuisinier฀and฀Segalen฀1986;฀Langlois฀1999;฀Rogers฀1999,฀ 2001).฀ Dumont฀ became฀ “international”฀ and฀ part฀ of฀ the฀ core฀ of฀ the฀ history฀of฀general฀anthropology฀only฀once฀he฀left฀France฀as฀his฀main฀ research฀concern฀and฀became฀a฀South฀Asianist฀and฀a฀theoretician.

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The฀fate฀of฀van฀Gennep’s฀work,฀too,฀demonstrates฀some฀of฀the฀paradoxes฀of฀our฀discipline.฀As฀we฀have฀seen,฀Lévi-Strauss฀(1947)฀defined฀ him฀as฀a฀folklorist,฀unaffiliated฀with฀the฀Durkheimian-Maussian฀school฀ that฀was฀the฀dominant฀center฀of฀sociology฀in฀the฀first฀three฀decades฀of฀ the฀twentieth฀century฀in฀France.฀He฀did฀recuperate฀van฀Gennep’s฀most฀ ethnographic฀ works฀ and฀ his฀ book฀ on฀ rites฀ de฀ passage฀ (1909)฀ but฀ left฀ out฀his฀vast฀ethnological฀(folkloristic)฀production฀on฀France฀because฀it฀ was฀not฀considered฀sociology฀or฀ethnology.฀Van฀Gennep’s฀main฀“sin”฀ was฀his฀lack฀of฀theoretical฀stringency.฀He฀had฀a฀great฀deal฀of฀intuition,฀ enthusiasm,฀generosity,฀and฀field฀experience—even฀including฀fieldwork฀ in฀Algeria—but฀he฀was฀unable฀to฀develop฀systematic฀models฀or฀clear฀ conceptual฀ frameworks฀ (see฀ Belmont฀ 1979;฀ Centlivres฀ and฀ Vaucher฀ 1994). According฀to฀Abélès’s฀account฀of฀anthropology฀in฀France฀(1999:฀404),฀ the฀Center฀for฀French฀Ethnology,฀located฀at฀the฀Museum฀of฀Popular฀ Art฀and฀Tradition,฀“pursued฀ethnological฀work฀on฀France฀very฀much฀ along฀the฀lines฀of฀exotic฀anthropology,”฀but฀it฀was฀marginal.฀Abélès฀ remembered฀ that฀ in฀ the฀ 1970s,฀ when฀ he฀ entered฀ the฀ “cathedral”฀ of฀ anthropology฀in฀France,฀the฀Laboratoire฀d’Anthropologie฀Sociale,฀all฀of฀ the฀researchers฀were฀working฀on฀exotic฀societies,฀and฀the฀work฀done฀by฀ French฀anthropologists฀on฀France฀“was฀treated฀more฀as฀a฀curiosity฀than฀ as฀something฀truly฀serious”฀(1999:฀405).฀He฀admitted฀that฀this฀situation฀ began฀to฀change฀at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀1970s,฀for฀three฀reasons: First,฀anthropological฀studies฀in฀France฀not฀only฀provided฀empirical฀data฀ but฀also฀opened฀new฀theoretical฀perspectives,฀for฀example,฀on฀what฀LéviStrauss฀ termed฀ “complex฀ structures”฀ of฀ kinship฀ and฀ marriage.฀ Second,฀ there฀was฀a฀close฀connection฀between฀the฀anthropology฀of฀France฀and฀ new฀ developments฀ in฀ historical฀ scholarship.฀ Historians฀ and฀ anthropologists฀ shared฀ a฀ common฀ interest฀ in฀ studying฀ areas฀ such฀ as฀ kinship฀ and฀symbolism฀in฀rural฀France.฀Third,฀and฀finally,฀after฀1968,฀the฀French฀ public฀was฀increasingly฀interested฀in฀questions฀of฀identity,฀history,฀and฀ memory.฀ Books฀ dealing฀ with฀ rural฀ France,฀ for฀ instance,฀ found฀ a฀ large฀ audience฀in฀France.฀The฀creation฀of฀the฀Mission฀du฀Patrimoine฀Ethnologique฀is฀linked฀with฀this฀expansion฀of฀anthropology฀at฀home.฀(Abélès฀ 1999:฀405)

All฀ of฀ this฀ created฀ a฀ new฀ situation฀ in฀ France฀ and฀ new฀ dynamics฀ for฀ doing฀ a฀ more฀ legitimate฀ and฀ modern฀ anthropology฀ at฀ home.฀ This฀ time฀ anthropologists฀ were฀ no฀ longer฀ self-made฀ amateurs฀ or฀ dubious฀ folklorists.฀They฀were฀trained฀in฀the฀common฀tools฀of฀the฀discipline฀

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and฀did฀long-term฀fieldwork฀in฀small฀villages฀or฀urban฀contexts฀defined฀ in฀a฀strict฀methodological฀way. As฀we฀know,฀the฀creation฀of฀institutions฀with฀appropriate฀budgets฀ is฀ behind฀ many฀ miracles฀ in฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ the฀ social฀ sciences.฀ The฀ Mission฀ du฀ Patrimoine฀ Ethnologique,฀ founded฀ in฀ 1980,฀ filled฀ this฀role.฀The฀Mission฀was฀placed฀outside฀of฀the฀Ministry฀of฀Culture,฀ and฀as฀such,฀it฀was฀guaranteed฀more฀than฀generous฀ministerial฀grants฀ (see฀ Langlois฀ 1999:฀ 409).฀ It฀ defined฀ topics฀ of฀ research฀ that฀ had฀ not฀ been฀ thoroughly฀ studied฀ and฀ called฀ for฀ applications฀ for฀ grants฀ from฀ anthropologists฀ interested฀ in฀ working฀ at฀ home.฀ From฀ 1980฀ to฀ 2000,฀ the฀Mission฀financed฀450฀research฀projects—an฀impressive฀result.฀The฀ three฀main฀areas฀selected฀were฀French฀kinship฀and฀family,฀the฀study฀ of฀ urban฀ and฀ industrial฀ contexts—and฀ in฀ these฀ contexts,฀ studies฀ of฀ previously฀unstudied฀groups฀such฀as฀members฀of฀ethnic฀minorities฀and฀ social฀elites—and฀the฀analysis฀of฀associations฀and฀movements฀intended฀ to฀glorify฀regional฀culture฀(regional฀allegiances฀and฀cultural฀identities)฀ (Langlois฀1999:฀410).฀In฀1983฀it฀launched฀a฀new฀journal฀designed฀to฀ compete฀with฀the฀older฀and฀more฀traditional฀Ethnologie฀française;฀it฀was฀ named฀Terrain฀(Fieldwork). Another฀ important฀ tool฀ in฀ the฀ consolidation฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ France฀was฀the฀series฀of฀books฀that฀the฀Mission฀du฀Patrimoine฀Ethnologique฀published฀together฀with฀the฀Maison฀des฀Sciences฀de฀l’Homme฀ in฀the฀series฀“Ethnologie฀de฀la฀France.”฀So฀far฀the฀two฀institutions฀have฀ published฀more฀than฀twenty฀volumes,฀as฀well฀as฀six฀monographs฀outside฀ the฀series฀(see฀Mission฀du฀Patrimoine฀Ethnologique฀2000).฀The฀majority฀ of฀these฀texts฀are฀of฀high฀quality,฀and฀some฀have฀been฀translated฀into฀ English฀ and฀ published฀ by฀ Cambridge฀ University฀ Press฀ in฀ the฀ series฀ “Anthropology฀of฀France”฀(see฀Le฀Wita฀1994;฀Vialles฀1994;฀Zonabend฀ 1993). Many฀anthropologists฀turned฀to฀the฀study฀of฀France฀after฀long฀experience฀with฀non-European฀societies.฀This฀included฀Abélès฀himself,฀ who฀was฀originally฀an฀Africanist,฀and฀Christian฀Bromberger,฀who฀had฀ worked฀ in฀ Iran.฀ The฀ research฀ efforts฀ supported฀ by฀ the฀ Mission฀ were฀ without฀doubt฀original฀and฀are฀exemplified฀by฀the฀volume฀edited฀by฀ Bromberger฀(1998).฀The฀book,฀Passions฀ordinaires,฀deals฀with฀the฀ordinary฀ passions฀of฀the฀French,฀from฀football฀matches฀to฀national฀competitions฀ of฀dictation.฀The฀book฀includes฀careful฀analyses฀of฀the฀importance฀of฀ genealogies฀ and฀ of฀ publicity,฀ the฀ revival฀ of฀ esoteric฀ knowledge,฀ and฀ people’s฀interest฀in฀motorcycles,฀commitment฀to฀rock฀music,฀and฀passion฀ for฀wine.฀This฀is฀far฀from฀the฀construction฀of฀the฀“other”฀French฀person฀ as฀a฀“peasant”฀or฀an฀“Occitan.”฀Bromberger฀questioned฀the฀assumptions฀

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of฀authenticity฀in฀traditional฀ethnographies฀and฀depicted฀a฀world฀in฀ which฀new฀forms฀of฀sociality฀developed฀in฀daily฀life. The฀ anthropology฀ of฀ France฀ done฀ by฀ French฀ anthropologists฀ was฀ and฀is฀clearly฀a฀national฀project฀financed฀by฀the฀centralized฀state฀with฀฀ centralized฀institutions฀such฀as฀the฀Mission฀(see฀Rogers฀2001).฀It฀has฀ coexisted฀with฀the฀international฀dimension฀of฀the฀discipline,฀which,฀as฀ we฀have฀seen,฀belongs฀to฀the฀core฀of฀the฀standard฀history฀of฀anthropology.฀French฀anthropologists฀dealing฀with฀non-European฀populations฀ have฀felt฀threatened฀by฀this฀development.฀As฀early฀as฀1986,฀Alain฀Testart฀ questioned฀ the฀ Research฀ Council’s฀ considerable฀ support฀ of฀ anthropologists฀doing฀research฀in฀France,฀on฀the฀grounds฀that฀it฀was฀forgetting฀ the฀“rich฀past฀with฀great฀theoretical฀contributions”฀made฀when฀nonEuropeans฀were฀studied฀(Testart฀1986:฀141). As฀a฀national฀project,฀this฀branch฀of฀French฀anthropology฀is฀similar฀ to฀other฀important฀national฀projects,฀such฀as฀those฀in฀Brazil,฀Mexico,฀ India,฀and฀Peru,฀which,฀by฀focusing฀on฀their฀own฀native฀populations฀and฀ social฀problems,฀have฀built฀up฀“national฀traditions”฀(see฀Lomnitz฀2000;฀ Souza฀Lima฀2000).฀The฀international฀dimension฀of฀this฀anthropology฀ of฀France฀depends฀not฀so฀much฀on฀its฀theoretical฀contributions,฀which฀ are฀not฀yet฀particularly฀visible,฀as฀on฀its฀empirical฀innovations,฀which฀ have฀ proved฀ important฀ indeed.฀ We฀ might฀ say฀ that฀ anthropological฀ studies฀of฀France฀make฀up฀an฀“area฀study”฀constructed฀through฀relationships฀with฀foreign฀anthropologists฀doing฀fieldwork฀in฀France.฀Just฀as฀ Peruvian,฀ Mexican,฀ and฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologists฀ have฀ entered฀ into฀ dialogues฀with฀foreign฀colleagues,฀so฀have฀anthropologists฀in฀France.฀ French฀anthropologists฀have฀no฀monopoly฀over฀studies฀of฀their฀country,฀ and฀the฀growing฀interest฀of฀American฀anthropologists฀and฀others฀in฀ France฀has฀created฀a฀field฀of฀studies฀through฀which฀foreign฀and฀native฀ anthropologists฀ meet฀ (Reed-Danahay฀ and฀ Rogers฀ 1987).฀ This฀ has฀ in฀ turn฀created฀a฀sort฀of฀“competition”฀over฀ways฀of฀understanding฀French฀ society฀and฀culture.

The฀Ramifications฀of฀Dumont I฀return฀now฀to฀Dumont฀as฀a฀theoretician.฀Dumont฀went฀to฀South฀India฀ in฀1948,฀and฀his฀research฀among฀the฀Pramalai฀Kallar฀formed฀the฀basis฀for฀ his฀doctoral฀thesis฀(doctorat฀d’état).฀He฀joined฀the฀University฀of฀Oxford฀ in฀1951฀and฀stayed฀in฀the฀Institute฀of฀Social฀Anthropology฀there฀until฀ 1955.฀Back฀in฀France฀he฀was฀appointed฀director฀of฀studies฀at฀the฀École฀ Pratique฀des฀Hautes฀Études฀and,฀together฀with฀Daniel฀Thorner,฀created฀ the฀Center฀of฀Indian฀Studies.฀He฀became฀one฀of฀the฀dominant฀figures฀ of฀theoretical฀French฀anthropology.

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In฀1976฀Dumont฀organized฀a฀research฀team,฀“Équipe฀de฀la฀recherche฀ d’anthropologie฀ sociale:฀ Morphologie,฀ échanges”฀ (ERASME),฀ at฀ the฀ École฀Pratique฀des฀Hautes฀Études.฀The฀team’s฀main฀aim฀was฀to฀develop฀ theoretical฀approaches฀based฀on฀comparative,฀empirical฀studies฀of฀whole฀ societies.฀Dumont฀and฀his฀followers฀thus฀expanded฀their฀interest฀from฀ South฀Asia฀to฀other฀parts฀of฀Asia,฀Africa,฀and฀South฀America. After฀writing฀Homo฀hierarchicus฀(1971),฀Dumont฀was฀mainly฀concerned฀ with฀comparing฀ideologies฀and฀the฀ways฀society฀and฀the฀individual฀were฀ conceived฀of.฀He฀contrasted฀modern฀ideology,฀in฀which฀the฀individual฀ was฀felt฀to฀be฀the฀ultimate฀value฀and฀in฀which,฀consequently,฀society฀ was฀not฀regarded฀as฀a฀coherent฀whole,฀with฀holistic฀ideologies,฀in฀which฀ society฀ was฀ the฀ ultimate฀ value฀ and฀ was฀ not฀ separated฀ from฀ nature.฀ The฀question฀of฀the฀social฀construction฀of฀value฀was฀a฀key฀element฀in฀ his฀comparative฀work.฀Moreover,฀Dumont฀was฀always฀occupied฀with฀ eliciting฀hierarchical฀relations฀as฀a฀way฀of฀understanding฀why฀one฀of฀ the฀elements฀in฀an฀opposition฀could฀stand฀for฀the฀whole฀and฀therefore฀ encompass฀its฀opposite. Dumont’s฀legacy฀as฀a฀theoretician฀can฀be฀measured฀only฀in฀terms฀of฀ his฀influence฀over฀the฀debates฀concerning฀India,฀the฀caste฀system,฀and฀ modern฀individualism฀in฀general฀(see฀Galey฀1984;฀see฀also฀Visvanathan,฀ this฀volume).฀But฀in฀a฀different฀way฀of฀narrating฀the฀history฀of฀social฀ anthropology,฀ the฀ ramifications฀ of฀ Dumont’s฀ ideas฀ and฀ models฀ in฀ unexpected฀areas฀and฀places฀can฀reveal฀the฀complexity฀and฀ubiquity฀ of฀ideas฀in฀a฀situation฀of฀increasing฀internationalization฀of฀theories฀and฀ models.฀Mariza฀Peirano฀(1995:฀36)฀has฀called฀this฀kind฀of฀intellectual฀ exercise฀história-teórica฀(theoretical฀history).฀Two฀examples,฀one฀from฀ Norway฀and฀the฀other฀from฀Brazil—countries฀with฀anthropologies฀of฀two฀ different฀“sizes”—can฀help฀us฀think฀about฀the฀decentering฀process. In฀ the฀ 1980s฀ a฀ group฀ of฀ Norwegian฀ anthropologists฀ based฀ in฀ the฀ Department฀of฀Social฀Anthropology฀of฀the฀University฀of฀Oslo฀entered฀ into฀close฀cooperation฀with฀ERASME,฀then฀headed฀by฀Daniel฀de฀Coppet฀ after฀ Dumont’s฀ retirement.฀ Some฀ of฀ the฀ results฀ were฀ published฀ in฀ a฀ special฀ issue฀ of฀ Ethnos฀ in฀ 1990.฀ I฀ comment฀ briefly฀ on฀ some฀ of฀ the฀ Norwegians’฀readings฀of฀Dumont,฀with฀an฀emphasis฀on฀their฀criticism฀ that฀the฀role฀of฀gender฀in฀inequality฀was฀missing฀in฀his฀work.฀Marit฀ Melhuus฀(1990),฀for฀example,฀critically฀examined฀Dumont’s฀theory฀of฀ modernity฀and฀brought฀up฀the฀gender฀dimension,฀in฀terms฀not฀only฀ of฀modern฀discourse฀but฀also฀of฀modern฀practice.฀She฀commented฀on฀ Dumont’s฀overemphasis฀on฀the฀individual฀in฀modern฀society,฀suggesting฀ that฀the฀autonomous฀agent฀was฀instead฀the฀couple.฀She฀wrote:

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In฀order฀to฀understand฀the฀notion฀of฀the฀free฀individual,฀it฀is฀not฀enough฀ to฀ focus฀ on฀ the฀ individual฀ as฀ a฀ monad.฀ Rather,฀ we฀ should฀ focus฀ our฀ attention฀on฀how฀the฀notion฀of฀the฀individual฀is฀constructed฀within฀the฀ framework฀of฀the฀gender฀relation,฀i.e.฀as฀a฀dyad.฀We฀are฀suggesting฀then฀ that฀it฀may฀not฀be฀the฀notion฀of฀the฀individual฀as฀an฀autonomous฀being฀ which฀is฀at฀the฀centre฀of฀modernity—this฀would฀be฀a฀false฀or฀artificial฀ assumption,฀to฀use฀Dumont’s฀words—but฀rather฀the฀pair,฀the฀couple.฀To฀ phrase฀ the฀ argument฀ yet฀ another฀ way฀ while฀ stretching฀ it฀ to฀ its฀ logical฀ conclusion:฀ the฀ autonomous฀ agent฀ in฀ modern฀ society฀ is฀ the฀ couple.฀ Indicative฀of฀this฀positioning฀is฀the฀idea฀of฀romantic฀love฀and฀the฀very฀ notion฀ of฀ the฀ free฀ autonomous฀ choice฀ of฀ a฀ sexual฀ partner฀ of฀ opposite฀ gender.฀(Melhuus฀1990:฀156–57)

Ingrid฀Rudie฀(1990)฀examined฀Dumont’s฀hypothesis฀of฀value฀hierarchy฀ through฀the฀interconnections฀between฀gender,฀kinship,฀and฀seniority฀ in฀ rural฀ Malay฀ society.฀ There,฀ the฀ idea฀ of฀ seniority฀ was฀ a฀ prominent฀ value.฀Rudie฀described฀a฀social฀process฀in฀which฀a฀structure฀of฀genderneutral฀ seniority฀ and฀ balanced฀ gender฀ collectivities฀ gave฀ way฀ to฀ a฀ stronger฀collusion฀between฀seniority฀and฀maleness,฀a฀process฀that฀was฀ personified฀in฀the฀husband-wife฀dyad.฀Rudie฀was฀open฀to฀the฀possibility฀ of฀a฀“hierarchising฀impulse”฀in฀cultural฀processes,฀but฀she฀doubted฀that฀ the฀ultimate฀values฀would฀ever฀fully฀emerge฀in฀social฀realities,฀because฀ “society”฀has฀no฀unambiguous฀delimitation฀and฀because฀organizational฀ and฀communicative฀domains฀shrink฀and฀expand฀over฀time,฀so฀that฀any฀ dominant฀value฀can฀be฀challenged฀through฀organizational฀innovations฀ (1990:฀197–98). In฀a฀third฀example,฀Jon฀Schackt฀(1990)฀tried฀out฀the฀theory฀of฀hierarchy฀and฀value฀on฀the฀society฀and฀culture฀of฀the฀Yukuna฀Indians฀of฀ the฀ Colombian฀ Amazonas.฀ Schackt฀ showed฀ that฀ this฀ society฀ could฀ easily฀be฀analyzed฀to฀fit฀the฀Dumontian฀model฀of฀a฀hierarchical฀order,฀ but฀he฀criticized฀the฀notion฀that฀such฀an฀order฀could฀be฀anchored฀to฀ an฀ “ultimate฀ value.”฀ Rather฀ than฀ stressing฀ the฀ “premodern”฀ aspects฀ of฀ hierarchies,฀ he฀ argued฀ that฀ the฀ cognitive฀ functions฀ implied฀ were฀ expressive฀of฀the฀way฀the฀construction฀of฀all฀ideology฀may฀rely฀on฀the฀ less-than-strictly-logical฀aspects฀of฀human฀thinking.฀He฀suggested฀that฀ the฀ dichotomy฀ between฀ the฀ “modern”฀ and฀ the฀ “premodern”฀ might฀ itself฀be฀an฀ideological฀construction. These฀three฀authors,฀as฀well฀as฀other฀Norwegian฀contributors฀to฀the฀ volume—including฀Signe฀Howell฀(1990)฀and฀Solrun฀Williksen-Bakker฀ (1990)—looked฀critically฀at฀the฀Dumontian฀perspective.฀The฀majority฀ of฀the฀chapters฀demonstrate฀a฀preoccupation฀with฀issues฀of฀gender฀and฀

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gender฀relations,฀which฀provides฀a฀novel฀critique฀of฀the฀questions฀of฀ hierarchy฀and฀value,฀as฀well฀as฀of฀premodernity฀and฀modernity. Dumont’s฀influence฀in฀Brazil฀has฀also฀been฀decisive฀in฀shaping฀empirical฀ insights฀and฀theoretical฀debates.฀One฀feels฀that฀in฀the฀consolidation฀ of฀the฀teaching฀of฀modern฀anthropology฀in฀Brazil,฀Dumont฀has฀been฀ recognized฀as฀a฀central฀theoretical฀ancestor฀(see฀ABA฀1995;฀Peirano฀1991b,฀ 1995).฀Let฀me฀mention฀the฀work฀of฀three฀Brazilian฀anthropologists. Roberto฀DaMatta฀initiated฀his฀career฀as฀an฀Amazonist,฀and฀his฀ethnography฀ and฀ interpretations฀ are฀ impregnated฀ with฀ a฀ Lévi-Straussian฀ flavor฀(see฀DaMatta฀1973).฀When฀he฀turned฀to฀the฀analysis฀of฀complex,฀ modern฀Brazil,฀DaMatta฀was฀clearly฀inspired฀by฀Dumont฀(see฀DaMatta฀ 1979,฀1984,฀1985,฀1996).฀Brazil,฀according฀to฀him,฀was฀a฀society฀visibly฀ characterized฀by฀a฀sharp฀division฀between฀the฀“home”฀and฀the฀“street,”฀ as฀well฀as฀between฀the฀family—a฀system฀of฀hierarchical฀social฀relations฀ and฀persons—and฀the฀market฀and฀free฀individuals.฀For฀DaMatta฀these฀ divisions฀were฀less฀about฀geographical฀or฀physical฀places฀than฀they฀were฀ symbols฀of฀moral฀and฀ideological฀universes.฀Carnival฀and฀football฀were฀ privileged฀because฀in฀them฀the฀personalized฀social฀world฀of฀the฀home฀ and฀ the฀ impersonal฀ universe฀ of฀ the฀ street฀ were฀ combined฀ in฀ public฀ rituals.฀Football฀and฀Carnival฀made฀possible฀the฀expression฀of฀individual฀ qualities,฀and฀thus฀they฀were฀sources฀of฀public฀individualization,฀much฀ more฀than฀they฀were฀instruments฀of฀collectivization฀at฀the฀personal฀ level.฀The฀deep฀meaning฀of฀the฀rituals฀was฀that฀in฀them,฀individuals฀ could฀experience฀equality฀and฀freedom฀in฀hierarchical฀contexts. In฀his฀analysis฀of฀the฀categories฀of฀the฀person฀and฀the฀individual฀in฀ Brazil,฀DaMatta฀emphasized฀the฀concerns฀of฀individuals฀for฀maintaining฀ order฀and฀hierarchy฀in฀a฀world฀that฀was฀imagined฀as฀equal:฀“The฀world฀ must฀move฀in฀terms฀of฀an฀absolute฀harmony,฀the฀evident฀consequence฀ of฀a฀system฀dominated฀by฀a฀totality฀which฀strong฀and฀weak฀actors฀agree฀ upon”฀(1979:฀147).฀DaMatta’s฀Dumontian฀perspective฀has฀been฀both฀ fertile฀and฀controversial฀in฀Brazilian฀anthropology.฀It฀has฀helped฀create฀ an฀important฀field฀of฀empirical฀analysis฀of฀the฀rituals฀of฀modernity— sports,฀dance,฀games,฀and฀plays—and฀it฀still฀provokes฀theoretical฀debates฀ (see฀Gomes,฀Barbosa,฀and฀Drummond฀2000;฀Soares฀Pechincha฀2002). Gilberto฀Velho’s฀book฀(1981)฀on฀the฀complexities฀of฀understanding฀ individualism฀ among฀ the฀ Brazilian฀ middle฀ classes฀ was฀ also฀ clearly฀ influenced฀by฀Dumont.฀Velho฀fully฀described฀the฀tension฀between฀family฀ membership฀and฀loyalty,฀on฀one฀hand,฀and฀individual฀life฀projects,฀on฀ the฀other.฀He฀argued฀that฀family฀and฀class฀were฀hierarchical฀mechanisms฀ that฀could฀be฀checked฀by฀individualism.฀A฀proper฀comprehension฀of฀ Brazilian฀society฀ought฀to฀be฀grasped฀through฀a฀careful฀ethnography฀

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of฀ life฀ histories,฀ which฀ would฀ demonstrate฀ the฀ existence฀ of฀ cultural฀ and฀social฀tensions฀in฀the฀shaping฀of฀Brazilian฀modernity฀(Velho฀1981:฀ 75). The฀ important฀ work฀ of฀ Luiz฀ Fernando฀ Dias฀ Duarte฀ on฀ the฀ urban฀ working฀class฀in฀Brazil฀was฀also฀inspired฀by฀Dumont’s฀theory฀of฀modernity.฀ Dias฀ Duarte฀ admitted฀ Dumont’s฀ influence฀ in฀ his฀ work฀ and฀ placed฀his฀ethnography฀in฀relation฀to฀the฀theory฀of฀hierarchy฀and฀the฀ comparative฀analysis฀of฀holism฀and฀individualism฀(Dias฀Duarte฀1986:฀ 40).฀He฀constructed฀a฀model฀in฀which฀hierarchy฀and฀holism฀had฀to฀be฀ combined฀with฀an฀explicit฀treatment฀of฀individualism฀and฀equality—as฀ in฀DaMatta’s฀work.฀He฀saw฀Brazil฀as฀a฀hybrid฀social฀world฀and฀never฀as฀a฀ pure฀model฀dominated฀by฀either฀holism฀or฀individualism.฀Dias฀Duarte฀ showed฀that฀models฀that฀emphasized฀the฀preeminence฀of฀the฀group฀ over฀the฀individual,฀often฀used฀in฀examining฀working-class฀culture,฀were฀ unable฀to฀reveal฀the฀entire฀picture.฀He฀maintained฀that฀the฀ideology฀of฀ individualism฀was฀a฀constitutive฀element฀of฀the฀working-class฀cultural฀ world,฀and฀in฀this฀sense฀it฀was฀both฀external,฀defined฀by฀social฀scientists,฀ and฀internal,฀experienced฀by฀the฀actors฀themselves฀(1986:฀141). Dumont฀has฀been฀very฀much฀alive฀in฀the฀tropics,฀to฀a฀great฀extent฀ through฀the฀creativity฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropologists,฀who฀have฀used฀his฀ theories฀to฀understand฀the฀complexities฀of฀modernity.฀The฀development฀ of฀the฀anthropology฀of฀France,฀however,฀and฀of฀modernity฀in฀general฀ in฀the฀Euro-American฀tradition฀has฀not฀been฀influenced฀by฀Dumontian฀ thoughts฀and฀models.฀We฀might฀say฀that฀his฀contributions฀have฀been฀ decentered฀in฀the฀center฀and฀centered฀in฀the฀periphery—a฀metaphor฀for฀ a฀better฀way฀of฀making฀comparisons.฀Both฀the฀work฀of฀the฀Norwegian฀ anthropologists฀whom฀I฀mentioned,฀with฀their฀focus฀on฀gender฀equality฀ and฀ hierarchy,฀ and฀ the฀ rich฀ models฀ of฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologists฀ are฀ indications฀ of฀ the฀ intricate฀ ways฀ in฀ which฀ anthropology฀ is฀ made฀ an฀ international฀discipline.

By฀Way฀of฀Concluding:฀Ambiguities฀and฀ Contradictions I฀hope฀the฀vignettes฀I฀have฀presented฀will฀facilitate฀a฀better฀reading฀of฀ the฀developments฀of฀anthropology฀in฀France.฀French฀anthropology฀has฀ been฀a฀central฀arena฀in฀the฀constitution฀of฀international฀anthropology฀ and฀a฀source฀of฀inspiration฀for฀the฀discipline฀as฀a฀whole.฀Generally฀it฀ is฀ said฀ that฀ “theory”฀ and฀ explicit฀ philosophical฀ thinking฀ have฀ been฀ typical฀ French฀ products,฀ and฀ that฀ exemplary฀ ethnographies฀ were฀ a฀ British฀trademark.฀These฀are,฀at฀least,฀the฀commonsense฀or฀accepted฀

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historical฀narratives฀of฀the฀way฀anthropology฀constituted฀itself฀over฀the฀ last฀one฀hundred฀years.฀It฀is฀time฀now฀to฀carry฀out฀a฀systematic฀critical฀ analysis฀ of฀ this฀ “tradition,”฀ examining฀ some฀ of฀ the฀ ambiguities฀ and฀ contradictions฀that฀manifest฀themselves฀in฀institutions,฀persons,฀and฀ financial฀support.฀I฀hope฀I฀have฀been฀able฀to฀show,฀as฀James฀Clifford฀ did฀before,฀the฀way฀travel฀literature,฀fiction,฀and฀subjectivity,฀in฀a฀kind฀ of฀avant฀la฀lettre฀postmodernist฀mood,฀influenced฀the฀anthropology฀of฀ the฀1930s฀and฀converted฀some฀of฀its฀practitioners฀into฀marginal฀and฀ controversial฀figures. The฀ recent฀ consolidation฀ of฀ the฀ anthropology฀ of฀ France฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀the฀high฀quality฀of฀the฀ethnography฀it฀produces,฀its฀demographic฀ presence,฀and฀the฀generous฀public฀financial฀help฀it฀receives฀has฀troubled฀ the฀conventional฀practice฀of฀the฀discipline.฀France฀has฀embarked฀upon,฀ as฀never฀before,฀a฀national฀task฀of฀studying฀its฀own฀society฀and฀culture฀ and,฀in฀this฀process,฀has฀led฀modern฀social฀anthropology฀to฀incorporate฀ ethnology,฀folklore,฀and฀history.฀The฀imperial฀and฀the฀national฀embrace฀ each฀other.฀In฀the฀anthropology฀of฀modern฀France,฀the฀explicit฀influence฀ of฀Dumont฀is฀less฀important฀than฀it฀is฀in฀“peripheries”฀such฀as฀Brazil฀and฀ Norway.฀The฀description฀of฀travel฀and฀of฀the฀unexpected฀ramifications฀ of฀ ideas฀ in฀ distant฀ places฀ and฀ different฀ times฀ is,฀ I฀ believe,฀ a฀ fruitful฀ tool฀for฀a฀better฀understanding฀of฀the฀way฀world฀anthropologies฀are฀ constituted.

s e v e n

The Production of Knowledge and the Production of Hegemony Anthropological Theory and Political Struggles in Spain

Susana Narotzky

Communication฀is฀the฀process฀of฀making฀unique฀experience฀into฀common฀ experience,฀ and฀ it฀ is,฀ above฀ all,฀ the฀ claim฀ to฀ live.฀ For฀ what฀ we฀ basically฀say,฀in฀any฀kind฀of฀communication฀is:฀“I฀am฀living฀in฀this฀way฀ because฀ this฀ is฀ my฀ experience.”฀ .฀ .฀ .฀ Since฀ our฀ way฀ of฀ seeing฀ things฀ is฀ literally฀our฀way฀of฀living,฀the฀process฀of฀communication฀is฀in฀fact฀the฀ process฀of฀community:฀the฀sharing฀of฀common฀meanings,฀and฀thence฀ common฀activities฀and฀purposes;฀the฀offering,฀reception฀and฀comparison฀ of฀new฀meanings฀leading฀to฀the฀tensions฀and฀achievements฀of฀growth฀ and฀change. —Raymond฀Williams,฀The฀Long฀Revolution

The฀ project฀ of฀ creating฀ a฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ network฀ challenges฀ anthropologists฀ to฀ engage฀ not฀ only฀ in฀ worldwide฀ communication฀ but฀also฀with฀knowledge฀produced฀in฀non-academic฀contexts฀and฀in฀ nonscientific฀realms฀of฀experience.฀The฀desire฀to฀create฀a฀new฀form฀of฀ communication฀stems฀from฀the฀will฀to฀be฀alive,฀to฀form฀a฀community฀ that฀ will฀ allow฀ us฀ to฀ grow฀ and฀ change฀ in฀ unexpected฀ directions.฀ In฀ pursuing฀ this฀ ecumenical฀ objective,฀ however,฀ anthropologists฀ must฀ deal฀with฀the฀awareness฀that฀all฀knowledge฀is฀produced฀in,฀and฀seeks฀ to฀create,฀particular฀fields฀of฀power,฀and฀we฀are฀not฀exempt฀from฀this฀ ourselves.฀ The฀ tension฀ in฀ the฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ project฀ is฀ one฀ between฀ “epistemological฀ tolerance,”฀ with฀ its฀ paradoxical฀ liberal,฀ 133

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modernist฀taint,฀and฀an฀epistemological฀program฀that฀has฀a฀definite฀ grounding฀in฀emancipatory฀political฀projects.1฀It฀is฀this฀tension฀I฀want฀ to฀address. My฀goal฀in฀this฀chapter฀is฀to฀explore฀three฀probably฀incompatible฀ discourses฀that฀represent,฀nonetheless,฀serious฀attempts฀to฀go฀beyond฀the฀ easy฀disqualification฀of฀particular฀nonhegemonic฀forms฀of฀knowledge฀as฀ “epistemological฀nativism.”฀The฀first฀is฀the฀discourse฀of฀singularity฀and฀ autonomous฀consciousness,฀which฀raises฀the฀issue฀of฀the฀unavoidable฀ opacities฀of฀translation฀we฀should฀contend฀with฀if฀we฀choose฀to฀recognize฀ the฀ “heterotemporality”฀ of฀ plural฀ histories฀ and฀ forms฀ of฀ knowledge฀ (Chakrabarty฀2000:฀72–96).฀The฀second฀is฀the฀discourse฀of฀participation฀ in฀ a฀ local฀ political฀ project฀ as฀ part฀ of฀ the฀ production฀ of฀ knowledge,฀ where฀commitment฀to฀a฀collective฀struggle฀against฀(or฀for)฀some฀form฀ of฀domination฀and฀injustice฀requires฀both฀concrete฀experience฀and฀a฀ certain฀urgency฀in฀identifying฀historical฀forces฀that฀are฀seen฀to฀be฀substantial฀and฀material.฀The฀third฀is฀the฀discourse฀of฀ethnographic฀realism฀ (Terradas฀1993),฀representing฀an฀attempt฀to฀revive฀anthropology฀as฀a฀ comparative฀endeavor฀by฀developing฀the฀explicitness฀embedded฀in฀the฀ realist฀ methodology฀ of฀ early฀ ethnographies.฀ By฀ engaging฀ with฀ these฀ three฀methodological฀perspectives,฀I฀hope฀to฀raise฀some฀issues฀about฀how฀ a฀world฀anthropologies฀network฀could฀provide฀a฀real฀communicative฀ space฀for฀fostering฀growth฀in฀anthropological฀knowledge.

Andalusia฀and฀the฀Rest Let฀me฀start฀with฀a฀piece฀of฀local฀history—the฀history฀of฀the฀awareness฀ of฀a฀particular฀form฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀in฀Spain.฀In฀1973,฀at฀ the฀First฀Conference฀of฀Spanish฀Anthropologists฀(Primera฀reunión฀de฀ antropólogos฀españoles),฀held฀in฀Seville,฀Isidoro฀Moreno฀(University฀of฀ Seville)฀addressed,฀in฀a฀paper฀about฀anthropological฀research฀in฀Spain฀ (published฀in฀1975),฀the฀production฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀in฀ that฀country,฀particularly฀in฀Andalusia.฀He฀described฀it฀as฀a฀double฀colonization.฀The฀first฀colonization฀was฀spatial:฀foreign฀anthropologists,฀ mainly฀North฀Americans,฀conceived฀of฀Spain฀exclusively฀as฀a฀territory฀full฀ of฀informants,฀as฀an฀object฀of฀study,฀and฀they฀offered฀nothing฀valuable฀ “to฀the฀knowledge฀of฀Spain,฀the฀progress฀of฀Spanish฀anthropology฀or฀the฀ development฀of฀anthropological฀theory.”฀The฀second฀was฀theoretical:฀ this฀ was฀ colonization฀ through฀ local฀ anthropologists’฀ mechanical฀ application฀of฀concepts฀and฀theories฀developed฀by฀Anglophone฀scholars฀ to฀deal฀with฀other฀realities฀(Moreno฀1975:฀325–26).

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In฀a฀paper฀written฀ten฀years฀later,฀Moreno฀(1984)฀developed฀this฀early฀ insight฀more฀thoroughly฀and฀tried฀to฀show฀how฀two฀very฀different฀ethnographies฀ of฀ Andalusia,฀ one฀ by฀ a฀ British฀ structural-functionalist,฀ J.฀ A.฀ Pitt-Rivers฀(1971),฀and฀the฀other฀by฀an฀American฀radical฀anthropologist,฀ D.฀ Gilmore฀ (1980),฀ both฀ suffered฀ from฀ blatant฀ forms฀ of฀ ignorance฀ stemming฀from฀their฀authors’฀superficial฀involvement฀with฀the฀local฀ history,฀ economic฀ realities,฀ political฀ conflicts,฀ and฀ symbolic฀ expressions฀of฀Andalusia.฀He฀wrote:฀“In฀both฀community฀studies,฀once฀again,฀ Andalusia฀provides฀only฀the฀field,฀and฀the฀excuse,฀for฀useless฀academic฀ polemics฀that฀take฀place฀in฀other฀countries฀and฀for฀obtaining฀degrees฀ and฀status฀for฀professionals฀in฀anthropology฀who฀have฀little฀real฀interest฀ in฀the฀present฀and฀future฀of฀the฀Andalusian฀people.฀And฀this฀has฀only฀ one฀name,฀that฀of฀anthropological฀colonialism”฀(Moreno฀1984:฀73,฀original฀ emphasis). Moreno’s฀phrases฀“useless฀academic฀polemics,”฀“obtaining฀degrees฀ and฀status฀for฀professionals฀in฀anthropology,”฀and฀“little฀real฀interest฀ in฀the฀present฀and฀future฀of฀the฀Andalusian฀people”฀echo฀the฀language฀ of฀ some฀ contemporaneous฀ critiques฀ of฀ the฀ production฀ of฀ anthropological฀knowledge฀(Asad฀1973;฀Fabian฀1983)฀as฀well฀as฀path-breaking฀ papers฀such฀as฀F.฀H.฀Cardoso’s฀critique฀of฀the฀apolitical฀“consumption”฀ of฀dependency฀theory฀by฀US฀scholars฀(1977)฀and฀works฀in฀the฀earlier฀ phase฀of฀subaltern฀studies฀(see฀Pouchepadass฀2000).฀But฀they฀were฀produced฀without฀knowledge฀of฀those฀critiques,฀that฀is,฀without฀the฀sense฀ of฀participating฀in฀a฀wider฀polemic฀about฀anthropological฀knowledge.฀ Rather,฀Moreno฀used฀them฀in฀expression฀of฀his฀personal฀experience฀as฀ both฀ an฀ anthropologist฀ and฀ an฀ Andalusian฀ nationalist฀ of฀ a฀ Marxian฀ background,฀ strongly฀ engaged฀ in฀ political฀ participation.฀ His฀ critique฀ stemmed฀from฀the฀felt฀inadequacies฀of฀the฀separation฀of฀theory฀from฀ practice;฀the฀reproduction฀of฀a฀structure฀that฀validated฀what฀counts฀as฀ anthropological฀knowledge—that฀is,฀the฀patterns฀for฀acquiring฀professional฀status฀at฀the฀center;฀and฀the฀lack฀of฀personal฀or฀political฀engagement฀on฀the฀part฀of฀the฀outside฀researcher—that฀is,฀the฀objectification฀ of฀the฀anthropological฀subject.฀I฀will฀come฀back฀to฀this฀later. The฀ story,฀ however,฀ has฀ more฀ developments฀ to฀ it.฀ In฀ 1997,฀ in฀ his฀ contribution฀ to฀ the฀ book฀ Provocations฀ of฀ European฀ Ethnology,฀ Michael฀ Herzfeld฀pointed฀to฀the various฀responses฀of฀Europeans฀to฀the฀sometimes฀startling฀discovery฀that฀ they฀are฀already฀under฀the฀dissecting฀gaze฀of฀anthropologists.฀This฀is฀both฀ an฀intellectual฀refinement฀of฀a฀covert฀racism฀(of฀the฀“we฀are฀not฀savages”฀

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variety),฀ at฀ one฀ level,฀ and฀ at฀ another,฀ paradoxically,฀ a฀ late฀ version฀ of฀ the฀colonialist฀critique฀of฀anthropology.฀These฀are฀not฀necessarily฀mutually฀incompatible฀stances.฀Taken฀together,฀however,฀they฀indicate฀how฀ powerful฀and฀pervasive฀is฀the฀model฀of฀occidental฀superiority฀and฀the฀ idea฀that฀rational฀scholars฀are฀somehow฀free฀of฀cultural฀constraints฀or฀ the฀ messy฀ vagueness฀ of฀ symbolism฀.฀.฀.฀ Moreover,฀ they฀ reflect฀ the฀ perpetuation฀ of฀ colonialist฀ assumptions฀ even,฀ or฀ especially,฀ within฀ the฀ optimistically฀named฀“new฀Europe.”฀This฀appears฀with฀notable฀force฀in฀ the฀ epistemological฀ nativism฀ of฀ certain฀ Spanish฀ anthropologists฀ (e.g.,฀ Llobera฀ 1986;฀ Moreno฀ 1984),฀ although฀ rarely฀ those฀ in฀ the฀ national฀ capital฀[no฀names฀or฀references฀given],฀a฀contrast฀that฀shows฀how฀easily฀ subnational฀ hierarchies฀ may฀ reproduce฀ international฀ inequalities.฀ (Herzfeld฀1997:฀714)

What฀I฀find฀revealing฀in฀this฀passage฀is฀the฀way฀Herzfeld฀unforgivingly฀ disavows฀southern฀European฀anthropologists฀as฀colleagues฀who฀might฀ share฀ polemic฀ anthropological฀ ground.฀ I฀ find฀ it฀ revealing,฀ too,฀ that฀ he฀cites฀a฀Catalan,฀Josep฀Llobera,฀and฀an฀Andalusian,฀Isidoro฀Moreno,฀ both฀ overtly฀ peripheral฀ nationalists,฀ located฀ far฀ from฀ “the฀ national฀ capital”฀and฀not฀particularly฀Spanish฀in฀their฀self-presentation.฀Herzfeld฀ points฀ to฀ these฀ scholars’฀ reluctance฀ to฀ be฀ taken฀ as฀ objects฀ of฀ study฀ “under฀the฀dissecting฀gaze฀of฀anthropologists,”฀a฀position฀he฀interprets฀ as฀a฀paradoxical฀mix฀of฀“the฀model฀of฀occidental฀superiority”฀and฀“a฀ late฀version฀of฀the฀colonialist฀critique฀of฀anthropology.”฀This฀creates฀a฀ breach฀between฀reflexive฀anthropological฀scholars฀at฀the฀centers,฀who฀ know฀that฀“rational฀scholars”฀are฀not฀“free฀from฀cultural฀constraints,”฀ and฀ other฀ anthropologists,฀ who฀ are฀ immersed฀ in฀ “epistemological฀ nativism.”฀As฀a฀consequence,฀he฀invalidates฀their฀scholarly฀but฀obsolete฀ methodological฀ critique฀ of฀ knowledge฀ production฀ in฀ anthropology.฀ Indeed,฀he฀negates฀the฀possibility฀of฀a฀conversation฀with฀these฀scholars฀ on฀common฀professional฀ground฀at฀all. The฀problem฀Herzfeld฀seems฀to฀have฀with฀the฀epistemological฀nativism฀ of฀peripheral฀Spanish฀anthropologists฀stems฀from฀his฀view฀of฀them฀as฀ akin฀ to฀ nationalistic฀ folklorists฀ and฀ therefore฀ subsumable฀ under฀ his฀ critique฀of฀the฀methodological฀“distancing”฀and฀conceptual฀“fixedness”฀ of฀nineteenth-century฀folklorists฀(Herzfeld฀1987).฀As฀a฀corollary,฀this฀ critique฀is฀based฀on฀his฀epistemological฀rejection฀of฀the฀explicit฀political฀ intent฀of฀folklorists’฀intellectual฀project.฀European฀“anthropologists”฀ who฀are฀peripheral฀nationalists฀are฀thus฀placed฀in฀the฀field฀as฀objects฀ of฀study฀and฀are฀precluded฀from฀entering฀the฀“a-nativist”฀(scientific?)฀ epistemological฀debate฀in฀anthropology.

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Why฀ is฀ Herzfeld฀ unwilling฀ to฀ engage฀ in฀ a฀ serious฀ epistemological฀ discussion฀with฀these฀anthropologists?฀Why฀the฀arrogant฀and฀dismissive฀ tone฀of฀his฀critique?฀Why฀is฀a฀form฀of฀“colonialist฀critique”฀that฀has฀been฀ voiced฀by฀scholars฀inside฀and฀outside฀the฀United฀States฀and฀the฀United฀ Kingdom฀since฀at฀least฀the฀late฀1960s฀(Asad฀1973;฀Berreman฀1968;฀Fabian฀ 1983;฀Gough฀1968)฀considered฀unacceptable฀in฀a฀southern฀European฀ location?฀Is฀it฀because฀it฀comes฀from฀“European”฀scholars?฀Because฀it฀ comes฀ from฀ “Spanish”฀ scholars?฀ Because฀ it฀ comes฀ from฀ (peripheral)฀ nationalist฀scholars฀in฀Europe?฀Or฀is฀it฀because฀he฀feels฀that฀there฀is฀ a฀ competition฀ for฀ field฀ and฀ knowledge฀ production฀ from฀ these฀ local฀ scholars,฀something฀that฀might฀undermine฀Anglophone฀authority฀in฀ that฀“area”฀of฀study?2฀Is฀it฀an฀appeal฀to฀openness฀or฀a฀practice฀of฀closure?฀ I฀will฀pursue฀these฀themes฀later฀in฀the฀chapter.

Passionate฀Epistemologies฀and฀the฀“Dissimulation฀of฀ Dissimulation฀in฀the฀North” I฀want฀to฀present฀another฀strand฀of฀the฀story฀of฀the฀polemical฀1984฀article฀ by฀Moreno.฀In฀his฀critique฀of฀Pitt-Rivers’s฀classic฀of฀Mediterraneanist฀ anthropology,฀The฀People฀of฀the฀Sierra฀(1954),฀Moreno฀wrote,฀referring฀to฀ the฀English-language฀version฀of฀the฀second฀edition฀(1971),฀which฀was฀ published฀for฀the฀first฀time฀in฀Spanish฀in฀the฀same฀year: When฀Pitt-Rivers฀in฀the฀preface฀to฀his฀book—which,฀by฀the฀way,฀was฀not฀ published฀in฀the฀Spanish฀version—declares฀that฀his฀objective฀has฀been฀to฀ explain,฀through฀an฀ethnographic฀example,฀Georg฀Simmel’s฀essay฀about฀ secrecy฀and฀the฀lie,฀he฀congratulates฀himself฀for฀not฀possibly฀having฀a฀ better฀ example฀ than฀ Grazalema฀ to฀ prove฀ it,฀ given฀ that—and฀ this฀ is฀ a฀ literal฀quotation—“Andalusians฀are฀the฀most฀accomplished฀liars฀I฀have฀ ever฀encountered฀.฀.฀.฀one฀never฀knows฀what฀Andalusians฀think.” ฀ What฀evidence฀did฀Pitt-Rivers฀have฀to฀assert฀this?฀His฀two-year฀experience฀in฀Grazalema.฀How฀would฀we฀characterize฀the฀assertion?฀.฀.฀.฀it฀shows฀ a฀ total฀ ignorance฀ of฀ the฀ meaning฀ of฀ popular฀ Andalusian฀ culture฀ as฀ a฀ culture฀of฀oppression,฀in฀which฀a฀series฀of฀traits—such฀as฀mistrust฀disguised฀ as฀ sympathy฀ with฀ strangers,฀ English฀ anthropologists฀ included—is฀ a฀ mechanism฀ of฀ defense,฀ the฀ fruit฀ of฀ centuries-old฀ collective฀ experience฀ in฀ the฀ face฀ of฀ that฀ which฀ is฀ external฀ and฀ unknown,฀ which฀ is฀ always฀ something฀potentially฀aggressive฀and฀a฀source฀of฀possible฀misfortune฀.฀.฀.฀ In฀any฀case,฀the฀aristocracy฀of฀British฀anthropology฀should฀have฀looked฀ in฀depth฀into฀this฀quality฀of฀being฀great฀liars฀that฀he฀attributes฀to฀us,฀in฀ order฀to฀explain฀it,฀instead฀of฀presenting฀it,฀as฀he฀does,฀as฀if฀it฀were฀a฀cultural฀explanation.฀(Moreno฀1984:฀73)

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This฀ critique฀ is฀ interesting฀ in฀ the฀ context฀ of฀ a฀ relatively฀ recent฀ publication฀in฀US฀anthropology฀that฀has฀a฀methodological฀objective฀ and฀that฀uses฀(among฀other฀material)฀precisely฀this฀preface฀to฀the฀second฀ edition฀of฀People฀of฀the฀Sierra.฀I฀am฀speaking฀of฀Michael฀Taussig’s฀Defacement:฀ Public฀Secrecy฀and฀the฀Labor฀of฀the฀Negative฀(1999).฀In฀this฀philosophical฀ work,฀ Taussig฀ presents฀ a฀ critique฀ of฀ the฀ use฀ of฀ historical฀ origins฀ and฀ social฀functions฀as฀methods฀for฀approaching฀an฀understanding฀of฀social฀ reality.฀In฀his฀characterization฀of฀reality,฀passion฀and฀empathy฀seem฀to฀ be฀better฀ways฀into฀cultural฀understanding฀than฀rational฀analysis. But฀the฀position฀of฀the฀anthropologist฀or฀historian฀in฀communicating฀ this฀reality,฀or฀even฀the฀need฀for฀doing฀so,฀remains฀obscure฀in฀his฀account.฀ Taussig฀uses฀Pitt-Rivers’s฀preface฀(as฀well฀as฀the฀entire฀ethnography)฀to฀ prove฀a฀methodological฀pitfall฀predicated฀on฀the฀dialectics฀of฀revelation฀ and฀public฀secrecy.฀The฀variable฀geometries฀and฀tensions฀between฀reality,฀ performance,฀and฀authorial฀narrative฀involve฀anthropological฀subjects’฀ dealings฀among฀themselves฀(as฀observed฀and฀interpreted฀by฀the฀British฀ anthropologist);฀ the฀ interaction฀ between฀ the฀ anthropologist฀ and฀ his฀ subjects฀of฀study;฀and฀the฀interaction฀between฀the฀anthropologist฀and฀the฀ reading฀public฀(both฀the฀scholar,฀as฀in฀Pitt-Rivers’s฀confrontation฀with฀Eric฀ Hobsbawm฀via฀footnotes,฀and฀the฀English-speaking฀nonscholar).฀Thus฀ Taussig฀points฀to฀the฀unavoidable฀selective฀processes฀of฀categorization฀ and฀analysis฀in฀the฀Enlightenment฀tradition฀of฀the฀social฀sciences,฀which฀ obscure฀and฀silence฀certain฀real-life฀practices฀as฀they฀enshrine฀others฀ with฀central฀explanatory฀powers.3 Moreover,฀he฀stresses฀the฀deceptiveness฀of฀the฀methodological฀pretense฀ that฀description฀and฀explanation฀are฀possible฀at฀all,฀because฀they฀are฀ based฀ in฀ the฀ “concealment฀ of฀ ideology”฀ (1999:฀ 74),฀ the฀ “charade฀ of฀ scientific฀detachment”฀(1999:฀75),฀and฀the฀repression฀of฀passion฀(1999:฀ 76).฀He฀grounds฀this฀deceptiveness฀concretely฀in฀a฀North-South฀power฀ relationship:฀ “For฀ what฀ is฀ surely฀ referenced฀ here฀ in฀ this฀ epiphanous฀ encounter฀between฀north฀and฀south,฀between฀the฀cultivated฀man฀of฀ letters฀from฀the฀north฀and฀the฀sun-drenched฀tillers฀of฀the฀southern฀soil฀ of฀untruth,฀is฀an฀uneasy฀acknowledgment฀as฀to฀a฀certain฀secret฀of฀the฀ secret฀in฀which฀the฀south฀has฀long฀had฀the฀function฀of฀mirroring,฀in฀ its฀dishonesty,฀the฀dissimulation฀of฀dissimulation฀in฀the฀north”฀(1999:฀ 76–77). Two฀things฀seem฀to฀me฀worth฀highlighting฀in฀regard฀to฀Taussig’s฀book.฀ The฀first฀is฀his฀comfortable฀unawareness฀of฀critiques฀by฀local฀scholars฀ (anthropologists฀and฀historians)฀of฀Pitt-Rivers’s฀ethnography฀(Frigolé฀ 1980,฀ 1989;฀ Martínez-Alier฀ 1968;฀ Moreno฀ 1984,฀ 1993;฀ Serrán฀ Pagán฀ 1980).฀They฀would฀have฀given฀him฀some฀insights฀into฀important฀aspects฀

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of฀knowledge฀production,฀into฀what฀the฀“cultivated฀men฀of฀letters฀from฀ the฀south”฀thought฀of฀the฀encounter,฀and฀into฀the฀real฀politics฀of฀the฀ production฀of฀truth฀in฀Mediterranean฀anthropology฀through฀various฀ forms฀of฀concealment.฀How฀might฀Taussig฀have฀responded,฀for฀example,฀ to฀local฀scholars’฀multiple฀and฀diverse฀critiques฀of฀Pitt-Rivers’s฀work?฀ How฀might฀he฀have฀dealt฀with฀their฀methodological฀perspectives,฀some฀ more฀passionate฀than฀others,฀but฀all฀of฀them฀with฀a฀“scientific”฀pretense฀ and฀therefore฀within฀the฀social-science฀Enlightenment฀tradition?฀What฀ happens฀ when฀ social฀ scientists,฀ while฀ aiming฀ for฀ description฀ and฀ explanation,฀ do฀ not฀ pretend฀ to฀ be฀ passionless,฀ ideologically฀ neutral,฀ or฀detached?฀How฀does฀their฀work฀speak฀to฀the฀work฀of฀those฀who฀base฀ their฀knowledge฀and฀its฀authority฀on฀the฀pretense฀of฀detachment?฀How฀ is฀it฀part฀of฀a฀political฀engagement,฀locally฀and฀nationally? Reading฀the฀work฀of฀local฀scholars฀would฀also฀have฀given฀Taussig฀an฀ additional฀item฀of฀information฀about฀public฀secrecy:฀the฀fact฀that฀the฀ preface฀to฀the฀second฀edition฀of฀Pitt-Rivers’s฀book฀was฀not฀published฀in฀ the฀first฀Spanish฀edition฀(1971),฀even฀though฀it฀was฀contemporaneous฀ with฀ the฀ English฀ second฀ edition.฀ Why?฀ Was฀ Pitt-Rivers’s฀ conscience฀ uneasy฀over฀his฀calling฀Andalusians฀as฀a฀whole—as฀a฀“culture”—liars?฀ Was฀ it฀ self-protection฀ against฀ possible฀ criticism฀ by฀ local฀ “native”฀ anthropologists฀such฀as฀Moreno?฀Whatever฀the฀case,฀it฀provided฀the฀turn฀ of฀the฀screw฀for฀the฀“dissimulation฀of฀dissimulation฀in฀the฀north.” I฀am฀more฀interested,฀however,฀in฀a฀second฀aspect฀of฀the฀comparison฀ between฀Moreno’s฀and฀Taussig’s฀scholarly฀exploitations฀of฀the฀“secrecyand-lie”฀ perspective฀ in฀ Pitt-Rivers’s฀ ethnography.฀ Taussig฀ criticized฀ modernist฀realist฀pretenses฀of฀revealing฀truth฀through฀rational฀analysis฀ (of฀functions฀or฀origins:฀e.g.,฀Dunk฀2000)฀and฀proposed฀impassioned฀ characterization฀ instead,฀ but฀ from฀ a฀ distance.฀ Moreno,฀ while฀ also฀ criticizing฀detachment—“professionals฀of฀anthropology฀who฀have฀little฀ real฀ interest฀ in฀ the฀ present฀ and฀ future฀ of฀ the฀ Andalusian฀ people”— proposed฀going฀into฀the฀historical฀depths฀of฀the฀production฀of฀a฀“culture฀ of฀ oppression”฀ and฀ a฀ meaningful฀ national฀ Andalusian฀ identity฀ that฀ did฀not฀eschew฀class,฀gender,฀and฀race฀as฀fields฀of฀force฀(Moreno฀1991,฀ 1992,฀1993).฀In฀Moreno’s฀critique฀we฀see฀that฀passionate฀practice฀is฀not฀ simply฀an฀abstracted฀idea฀of฀concrete฀participation฀that฀becomes฀an฀ end฀in฀itself,฀for฀the฀anthropologist’s฀enjoyment.฀Rather,฀it฀is฀actively฀ and฀outspokenly฀a฀political฀project,฀a฀desire฀for฀change,฀an฀emotional฀ engagement฀ aimed฀ at฀ transforming฀ Andalusian฀ lived฀ reality฀ in฀ a฀ particular฀direction฀by฀producing฀useful฀knowledge฀toward฀that฀end.฀ As฀part฀of฀a฀political฀project,฀then,฀it฀is฀necessarily฀part฀of฀an฀abstraction,฀ a฀process฀of฀“fixing”฀concepts฀that฀design฀and฀enable฀particular฀forms฀ of฀collective฀action.

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The฀foregoing฀can฀be฀seen฀in฀a฀contribution฀by฀Moreno฀(2001)฀to฀ a฀ volume฀ titled฀ La฀ identidad฀ del฀ pueblo฀ andaluz฀ (The฀ identity฀ of฀ the฀ Andalusian฀people),฀in฀which฀he฀explicitly฀states฀his฀intellectual฀and฀ political฀program.฀It฀is฀that฀of฀participation฀in฀the฀production฀of฀an฀ Andalusian฀identity฀in฀historical,฀cultural,฀and฀political฀terms฀in฀order฀ to฀empower฀Andalusian฀people฀in฀the฀context฀of฀increasingly฀globalized฀ market฀forces฀and฀multilayered฀structures฀of฀governance: In฀no฀place฀in฀the฀world฀does฀national฀sovereignty฀exist฀any฀longer,฀as฀it฀has฀ been฀understood฀up฀to฀now:฀our฀age฀is฀now฀one฀of฀“shared฀sovereignties,”฀ in฀ which฀ a฀ web฀ of฀ knots฀ of฀ different฀ sizes฀ and฀ importance฀ is฀ being฀ woven.฀ These฀ knots฀ will฀ define฀ the฀ structure฀ of฀ future฀ relationships฀ between฀ peoples.฀ If฀ Andalusia฀ does฀ not฀ become฀ one฀ of฀ these฀ knots,฀ it฀ will฀be฀excluded.฀If,฀on฀the฀contrary,฀it฀manages฀to฀occupy฀one฀of฀these฀ positions,฀this฀will฀mean฀emerging฀from฀the฀present-day฀periphery฀and฀ subalternity.฀And฀this฀is฀not฀only฀a฀problem฀of฀juridical฀definitions,฀but฀ of฀an฀everyday฀cultural฀and฀political฀leading฀position.฀There฀is฀no฀other฀ form,฀presently,฀of฀guaranteeing฀the฀survival฀of฀a฀people,฀in฀our฀case฀the฀ Andalusian฀ people,฀ than฀ through฀ asserting฀ and฀ developing฀ the฀ triple฀ dimension฀of฀identity:฀historical,฀cultural,฀and฀political.฀(Moreno฀2001:฀ 160)

And฀he฀adds: But฀ the฀ identidad-resistencia฀ [identity-resistance]฀ that฀ can฀ be฀ generated฀ today฀by฀Andalusian฀culture฀should฀be฀understood฀not฀as฀an฀end฀in฀itself฀ but฀as฀a฀means,฀a฀necessary฀preliminary฀stage,฀toward฀the฀construction฀ of฀an฀“identidad-proyecto”฀[identity-project]฀aimed฀at฀making฀possible฀a฀ less฀ unequal฀ and฀ unjust฀ society฀ than฀ the฀ present฀ one,฀ through฀ a฀ deep฀ transformation฀ of฀ the฀ internal฀ social฀ structure฀ and฀ the฀ termination฀ of฀ external฀dependency฀and฀subalternity.฀(2001:฀170)

To฀a฀“scientifically฀detached”฀intellectual,฀this฀program฀can฀be฀read฀ as฀ an฀ attempt฀ to฀ provide฀ a฀ clear฀ conceptual฀ category,฀ “Andalusian฀ identity,”฀in฀order฀to฀create฀something฀similar฀to฀what฀Gramsci฀called฀ a฀ historical฀ bloc฀ capable฀ of฀ producing฀ an฀ alternative฀ hegemony฀ for฀ revolutionary฀purposes.฀Alternatively,฀it฀could฀be฀read฀as฀akin฀to฀the฀ nationalistic฀folklorists’฀search฀for฀“origins”฀(Herzfeld฀1987).4฀For฀the฀ local฀scholar฀involved฀in฀the฀production฀of฀this฀quasi-homogenizing฀ concept฀ of฀ Andalusian฀ cultural฀ values—to฀ be฀ reshaped฀ into฀ tools฀ of฀

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struggle฀ against฀ totalizing฀ market฀ values฀ (Moreno฀ 2001:฀ 162–64)—it฀ is฀ much฀ more฀ than฀ that.฀ Are฀ we฀ prepared฀ to฀ deal฀ with฀ this฀ sort฀ of฀ politically฀ engaged฀ local฀ knowledge฀ production฀ without฀ displacing฀ it฀ from฀ epistemological฀ coevalness?฀ And฀ how฀ would฀ we฀ do฀ so฀ if฀ we฀ eschewed฀all฀the฀unitary฀frameworks฀produced฀by฀modernity?

The฀Production฀of฀Knowledge฀and฀Forms฀of฀Political฀ Engagement As฀the฀foregoing฀stories฀highlight,฀the฀issue฀of฀communicability฀within฀ fields฀of฀knowledge฀is฀tied฀both฀to฀the฀institutionalization฀of฀particular฀ regimes฀of฀truth฀and฀to฀the฀involvement฀of฀that฀institutionalization฀ with฀real-life฀issues฀of฀dominance฀and฀exploitation—that฀is,฀with฀the฀ reproduction฀of฀particular฀structures฀of฀inequality฀or,฀alternatively,฀the฀ replacement฀ of฀ those฀ structures฀ by฀ others.฀ I฀ am฀ well฀ aware฀ that฀ my฀ own฀discourse฀is฀entrenched฀in฀modernist฀assumptions฀about฀history฀ as฀a฀continuous฀and฀connected฀(and฀therefore฀unique)฀process฀tying฀ past฀and฀present฀realities฀to฀possible฀futures.฀It฀is฀not฀one,฀however,฀ that฀incorporates฀as฀its฀foundation฀a฀particular฀teleology฀of฀transitions฀ into฀a฀particular฀social,฀political,฀or฀economic฀future.฀I฀remain฀critical฀ of฀Foucault’s฀notion฀of฀“genealogy,”฀as฀opposed฀to฀“history,”฀for฀I฀try฀ to฀place฀the฀concrete฀analysis฀of฀local฀or฀regional฀historical฀processes฀ within฀the฀wider฀movement฀of฀a฀global,฀connected฀history.฀And฀I฀try฀to฀ follow฀the฀threads฀that฀create฀feelings฀of฀community฀and฀coherence— that฀create฀multiple฀histories฀enabling฀political฀agency—from฀the฀raw฀ materials฀of฀heterogeneous฀and฀contradictory฀situated฀experiences. If฀the฀method฀of฀“genealogy,”฀oriented฀against฀the฀power฀effects฀of฀ “scientific”฀discourse,฀has฀been฀a฀major฀epistemological฀breakthrough฀ for฀ the฀ social฀ sciences,฀ it฀ seems฀ to฀ me฀ nevertheless฀ that฀ it฀ has฀ also฀ produced฀a฀paradoxically฀paralyzing฀effect฀that฀Foucault฀did฀not฀intend.฀ The฀ultimate฀goal฀of฀the฀genealogy฀process฀was,฀for฀Foucault,฀to฀free฀ historical฀local฀knowledges฀from฀their฀subjugation฀so฀that฀they฀might฀ counter฀the฀coercion฀of฀a฀fixed,฀unitary,฀scientific฀theoretical฀discourse,฀ with฀the฀explicit฀aim฀of฀empowering฀them฀for฀struggle.฀The฀idea฀was฀that฀ of฀archaeology฀as฀method,฀genealogy฀as฀tactic฀(Foucault฀1979฀[1976a]:฀ 131).฀Unlike฀many฀of฀his฀followers฀in฀the฀social฀sciences,฀Foucault฀had฀a฀ political฀project฀explicitly฀concerned฀with฀specific,฀local฀struggles.฀He฀was฀ deeply฀engaged฀in฀the฀transformation฀of฀social฀reality฀as฀he฀experienced฀ it.฀He฀was฀interested฀not฀just฀in฀unveiling฀or฀exposing฀multiple฀processes฀ of฀discourse฀or฀knowledge;฀he฀also฀wanted฀to฀“exercise฀power฀through฀ the฀production฀of฀truth”฀(Foucault฀1979฀[1976b]:฀140).

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However—and฀this฀is฀the฀unresolvable฀tension฀in฀Foucauldian฀epistemology—the฀ “truth”฀ from฀ which฀ we฀ may฀ “exercise฀ power”฀ in฀ our฀ struggles฀ against฀ diverse฀ forms฀ of฀ domination฀ must฀ eventually฀ be฀ inscribed฀in฀some฀kind฀of฀fixed฀hierarchy,฀such฀as฀a฀particular฀concept฀ of฀justice.฀It฀will฀also฀have฀to฀be฀inscribed฀in฀a฀geometry฀of฀objectives฀ for฀change฀and฀thus฀acquire฀a฀set฀course,฀an฀“orientation,”฀a฀determined฀ “sense”฀of฀and฀for฀action.฀Yet฀the฀literal฀definition฀of฀“genealogy”฀presents฀an฀absolute฀arbitrariness฀of฀being,฀a฀permanent฀fluidity฀of฀everything:฀ time,฀ space,฀ people,฀ concepts,฀ relations,฀ knowledge฀ (Foucault฀ 1979฀[1971]:฀13).฀It฀is฀difficult,฀from฀this฀epistemological฀position,฀to฀ engage฀with฀reality฀in฀an฀attempt฀to฀transform฀it,฀because฀there฀is฀a฀ break,฀instead฀of฀a฀dialectical฀tension,฀“between฀‘real฀history’฀on฀the฀ one฀hand฀and฀the฀historical฀commentaries฀and฀texts฀of฀social฀actors฀and฀ intellectuals฀on฀the฀other”฀(Roseberry฀and฀O’Brien฀1991:฀12). We฀are฀left,฀then,฀with฀the฀question฀of฀how฀to฀render฀politically฀productive฀the฀tension฀between฀the฀production฀of฀multiple,฀situated฀knowledges฀ and฀concrete฀political฀engagements.฀As฀part฀of฀an฀interesting฀debate฀ over฀the฀historiography฀of฀racisms,฀Ann฀Laura฀Stoler฀raised฀the฀crucial฀ problem฀of฀“the฀politics฀of฀epistemologies.”฀Her฀analysis฀of฀anti-racist฀ histories฀of฀racisms฀led฀her฀to฀underscore฀that฀“the฀pursuit฀of฀origins฀that฀ constitutes฀‘traditional฀history’฀is฀a฀moral฀pursuit฀that฀is฀fundamentally฀ ahistoric”฀(Stoler฀1997b:฀248).฀Moreover,฀“a฀search฀for฀racisms’฀origins฀ both฀shapes฀and฀is฀shaped฀by฀how฀we฀think฀about฀race฀in฀the฀present฀ and฀what฀we฀imagine฀is฀effective฀anti-racist฀scholarship฀today”฀(Stoler฀ 1997b:฀249).฀Her฀point฀is฀that฀the฀focus฀on฀“fixity,฀permanency,฀somatics฀ and฀biology”฀(Stoler฀1997b:฀249)฀as฀the฀“original,”฀visible,฀physical฀form฀ of฀racism฀hides฀the฀fundamental฀ambiguity฀always฀present฀in฀racisms฀ between฀“ocular฀epistemologies”฀of฀somatic฀taxonomies฀and฀the฀fluid฀ plasticity฀of฀the฀intangible฀qualities฀that฀are฀social฀and฀cultural฀elements฀ of฀racial฀political฀practices. Stoler฀concluded฀that฀“if฀racisms฀have฀never฀been฀based฀on฀somatics฀ alone฀nor฀on฀a฀notion฀of฀fixed฀essence,฀then฀progressive฀scholarship฀ committed฀to฀showing฀the฀protean฀features฀of฀racial฀taxonomies฀does฀ little฀ to฀ subvert฀ the฀ logic฀ of฀ racisms,฀ since฀ that฀ logic฀ itself฀ takes฀ the฀ plasticity฀and฀substitutability฀of฀racial฀essences฀as฀a฀defining฀feature฀of฀ it”฀(Stoler฀1997b:฀252).฀In฀short,฀she฀concludes฀that฀epistemological฀error฀ deflects฀anti-racist฀struggle฀from฀the฀real฀issues฀and฀that฀contemporary฀ anti-racist฀ political฀ agendas฀ inform฀ histories฀ of฀ racisms’฀ origins฀ (see฀ also฀ Stoler฀ 1997a:฀ 201).฀ If฀ we฀ think฀ of฀ “political฀ rationalities”฀ as฀ an฀ important฀part฀of฀political฀economy,฀as฀Stoler฀suggests฀(1997b:฀250),฀we฀ can฀better฀situate฀our฀knowledge฀making฀as฀part฀of฀our฀own฀political฀

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agenda฀(anti-฀or฀pro-).฀As฀we฀attempt฀to฀analyze฀or฀communicate฀with฀ other฀forms฀of฀knowledge,฀we฀need฀also฀to฀be฀able฀to฀gauge฀the฀weight฀of฀ power฀struggles฀in฀the฀theoretical฀structures฀(and฀teleological฀histories)฀ they฀produce. Consciousness,฀then—and฀coherent฀consciousness฀as฀“knowledge”— is฀a฀material฀expression฀of฀experience,฀giving฀meaning฀to฀social฀relations฀ in฀ real฀ life,฀ and฀ also฀ a฀ material฀ force,฀ exerting฀ pressures฀ leading฀ to฀ change฀(Thompson฀1978:฀97,฀171,฀175–76;฀Williams฀1977:฀75–82).฀It฀ is฀ in฀ light฀ of฀ these฀ discursive฀ practices฀ or฀ political฀ rationalities฀ that฀ I฀ want฀ to฀ approach฀ the฀ issue฀ of฀ knowledge฀ production฀ and฀ political฀ engagement.฀Johannes฀Fabian฀(1983:฀152–65)฀developed฀the฀concepts฀ of฀“allochronic฀distancing”฀and฀“coevalness”฀in฀his฀effort฀to฀historicize฀ anthropological฀practice฀and฀find฀a฀way฀out฀of฀dominating฀forms฀of฀ knowledge฀production.฀His฀insight฀stresses฀the฀unavoidable฀coevalness฀ of฀ communication฀ not฀ only฀ in฀ the฀ field฀ encounter฀ but฀ also฀ in฀ the฀ encounter฀with฀other฀forms฀of฀produced฀knowledge฀through฀polemic.฀ Polemical฀ engagement฀ is฀ the฀ recognition฀ of฀ conceptual฀ co-presence,฀ summoning฀ us฀ to฀ engage฀ with฀ knowledge฀ forms฀ as฀ present฀ realities฀ (and฀political฀ones)฀and฀not฀as฀something฀enclosed฀in฀a฀past฀that฀is฀no฀ more฀or฀is฀in฀a฀realm฀of฀other-than-knowledge฀cultural฀production฀(see฀ also฀Amselle฀2000:฀211). I฀believe฀we฀need฀to฀know฀more฀about฀the฀global฀and฀local฀histories฀ that฀shape฀a฀particular฀order฀of฀domination,฀its฀material฀processes฀and฀ discursive฀frameworks,฀and฀its฀micro-฀and฀macropolitical฀fields฀of฀power.฀ Categories฀that฀shape฀local฀knowledges฀should฀be฀treated฀as฀part฀and฀ parcel฀of฀a฀historically฀formed฀discursive฀framework฀during฀conflictive฀ nationalist,฀colonial,฀postcolonial฀(and฀so฀forth)฀historical฀times฀and฀ spaces.฀We฀should฀engage฀with฀the฀fact฀that฀these฀categories฀take฀form฀as฀ part฀of฀tensions฀between฀different฀social฀and฀political฀agents฀at฀different฀ times,฀ agents฀ who฀ become฀ involved฀ in฀ multiple฀ and฀ heterogeneous฀ relationships฀as฀they฀try฀to฀secure฀differential฀access฀to฀resources฀and฀ power฀while฀forwarding฀and฀resisting฀claims฀to฀land,฀work,฀and฀symbols฀ through฀the฀production฀of฀different฀discourses฀that฀all฀have฀a฀pretense฀ of฀coherence฀(Roseberry฀1989,฀1994).

Exploring฀Epistemological฀Barriers฀to฀Real฀ Engagement At฀this฀point฀I฀would฀like฀to฀further฀develop฀three฀issues.฀The฀first฀is฀ that฀of฀comparison฀versus฀incommensurability฀and฀the฀possibility฀of฀ thinking฀of฀any฀knowledge฀as฀beyond฀communication,฀as฀well฀as฀the฀

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tension฀between฀distancing฀and฀participation.฀The฀second฀is฀the฀issue฀ of฀“project”฀and฀the฀break฀from฀the฀epistemologies฀of฀“modernity”— that฀is,฀the฀issue฀of฀whether฀postmodern฀fragmentary฀epistemologies,฀ in฀ which฀ categories฀ and฀ knowledge฀ are฀ “multisited,”฀ endlessly฀ selfreflexive,฀and฀permanently฀unstable,฀have฀the฀capacity฀to฀foster฀change.฀ The฀third฀is฀the฀issue฀of฀markets฀for฀knowledge฀products฀in฀relation฀ to฀the฀reproduction฀of฀power฀structures,฀setting฀the฀field฀of฀forces฀for฀ “authority”฀in฀knowledge,฀within฀the฀academy฀as฀well฀as฀without฀it,฀in฀ local,฀national,฀and฀international฀arenas.฀I฀want฀to฀show฀that฀political฀ engagement฀and฀“project”฀development฀are฀not฀exclusive฀prerogatives฀ of฀the฀left฀and฀that฀“peripheral”฀intellectuals฀are฀not฀a฀homogeneous฀ body฀of฀“counterhegemonic”฀knowledge฀producers,฀either. In฀order฀to฀develop฀these฀points฀in฀a฀comparative฀dimension,฀I฀briefly฀ explore฀the฀case฀of฀postcolonial฀South฀Asian฀scholars,฀addressing฀the฀ obstacles฀for฀real฀engagement฀produced฀by฀an฀abandonment฀of฀“realism”฀ and฀of฀modernist,฀unitary฀epistemological฀frameworks.฀These฀scholars’฀ critique฀of฀knowledge฀production฀is฀based฀on฀the฀concepts฀of฀power฀ and฀discursive฀regimes.฀The฀relationship฀between฀the฀two฀is฀posed฀in฀ such฀a฀way฀that฀their฀articulation฀constructs฀both฀the฀object฀of฀study฀ and฀ the฀ paradigm฀ (in฀ a฀ Kuhnian฀ sense)฀ or฀ authorial฀ narrative฀ (in฀ a฀ postmodern฀sense)฀under฀which฀social฀relationships฀are฀explored.฀There฀ is฀no฀fixity฀(no฀essentialism?)฀to฀the฀object฀of฀study฀but,฀instead,฀constant฀ displacement฀as฀the฀power฀relations฀enclosed฀in฀the฀teleological฀and฀ unitary฀histories฀of฀modernity฀(colonialist,฀nationalist,฀Marxist)฀seek฀ to฀produce฀a฀particular฀knowledge฀in฀order฀to฀perpetuate฀(or฀subvert)฀ the฀existing฀order฀(Guha฀1983a). Following฀a฀trend฀that฀originated฀in฀late-1960s฀Euro-American฀historiography฀ among฀ the฀ French฀ Annales฀ group,฀ with฀ its฀ “histoire฀ de฀ la฀ vie฀privée,”฀and฀among฀feminist฀historians—but฀almost฀simultaneously฀ among฀Italian฀historians฀doing฀microhistory,฀British฀social฀historians฀ such฀as฀Raphael฀Samuel฀and฀the฀History฀Workshop฀group,฀and฀German฀ social฀historians฀such฀as฀Lüdtke฀with฀the฀Alltageschiste฀group—the฀South฀ Asian฀subaltern฀studies฀group฀aimed฀to฀give฀voice฀to฀the฀“subaltern,”฀ a฀large฀and฀heterogeneous฀category฀of฀people.฀The฀originality฀of฀the฀ subaltern฀studies฀group฀developed฀as฀it฀moved฀closer฀to฀postmodernist฀ or฀Foucauldian฀assumptions฀and฀away฀from฀Marxist฀social฀history—that฀ is,฀when฀it฀abandoned฀realism,฀when฀discourse฀became฀its฀only฀referent฀ of฀reality,฀and฀when฀its฀knowledge฀production฀became฀self-referential.฀ As฀G.฀Prakash฀(1990:฀406)฀defined฀the฀new฀postorientalist฀scholarship:฀ “First,฀it฀posits฀that฀we฀can฀proliferate฀histories,฀cultures,฀and฀identities฀ arrested฀by฀previous฀essentializations.฀Second,฀to฀the฀extent฀that฀those฀

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made฀visible฀by฀proliferation฀are฀also฀provisional,฀it฀refuses฀the฀erection฀ of฀new฀foundations฀in฀history,฀culture,฀and฀knowledge.”฀Moreover,฀this฀ project฀was฀situated฀as฀a฀political฀one—“an฀issue฀of฀engaging฀the฀relations฀ of฀domination”฀in฀which฀“the฀power฀attributed฀to฀the฀knowledge฀about฀ the฀ past฀ makes฀ historical฀ writing฀ into฀ a฀ political฀ practice฀ and฀ turns฀ the฀recent฀post-Orientalists’฀historical฀accounts฀into฀contestatory฀acts”฀ (Prakash฀1990:฀407). Following฀other฀critiques฀of฀postcolonial฀perspectives฀(Dirlik฀2000;฀ O’Hanlon฀ and฀ Washbrook฀ 1992;฀ Pouchepadass฀ 2000;฀ Sarkar฀ 1997,฀ 1999;฀ Subrahmanyam฀ 2000),฀ I฀ want฀ to฀ underline฀ the฀ difficulty฀ this฀ epistemological฀vision฀poses฀to฀real฀political฀engagement.฀Critics฀have฀ pointed฀to฀the฀fact฀that฀postmodernist฀perspectives฀are฀themselves฀a฀ “grand฀narrative”฀and฀are฀inserted฀in฀present-day฀economic฀and฀political฀ fields฀of฀force฀(Dirlik฀2000:฀77;฀Subrahmanyam฀2000:฀95).฀They฀have฀ pointed฀ out฀ that฀ those฀ producing฀ this฀ postcolonial฀ knowledge฀ are฀ themselves฀fully฀a฀part฀of฀the฀centers฀of฀knowledge฀production,฀mainly฀ in฀ US฀ universities฀ (Bénéï฀ 2000;฀ Friedmann฀ 2000),฀ and฀ therefore฀ are฀ occupied฀in฀academic฀power฀struggles฀within฀those฀centers,฀rather฀than฀ in฀ subversive฀ action฀ in฀ “subaltern”฀ locations.฀ Some฀ have฀ pointed฀ to฀ the฀danger฀that฀the฀postcolonialist฀emphasis฀on฀local฀culture฀might฀be฀ used฀in฀justifying฀right-wing฀nationalist฀politics฀locally฀in฀India฀(Bénéï฀ 2000;฀Pouchepadass฀2000:฀179). It฀is฀interesting฀to฀compare฀the฀work฀of฀“subalternist”฀historians฀in฀ the฀United฀States฀with฀that฀of฀the฀rest฀(in฀Europe฀and฀India).฀S.฀Kaviraj฀ (SOAS,฀London),฀for฀example,฀points฀to฀the฀dependency฀of฀postcolonial฀ theory฀on฀Western฀knowledge฀(2000:฀75)฀and฀seems฀to฀propose฀a฀detachment฀ from฀ it฀ linguistically฀ and฀ theoretically฀ (2000:฀ 79,฀ 84–85).฀ What฀he฀seems฀to฀suggest฀is฀a฀vindication฀of฀unawareness฀of฀Western฀ theory฀and฀Western฀debates฀(see฀also฀Ramanujan฀and฀Narayana฀Rao฀in฀ Subrahmanyam฀2000:฀92).฀On฀the฀other฀hand,฀a฀historian฀such฀as฀Sumit฀ Sarkar฀(University฀of฀New฀Delhi),฀originally฀a฀part฀of฀the฀subaltern฀studies฀ group฀and฀actively฀involved฀in฀the฀public฀critique฀of฀the฀fascistization฀ of฀the฀Hindu฀nationalist฀movement฀(through฀his฀contributions฀in฀daily฀ newspapers,฀ his฀ teaching,฀ and฀ his฀ writings฀ in฀ Bengali฀ and฀ English),฀ was฀unprepared฀to฀forgo฀a฀Marxian฀idea฀of฀differentiation฀within฀the฀ framework฀of฀a฀unique฀history฀and,฀significantly,฀of฀a฀realist฀history.฀ In฀ Sarkar’s฀ view,฀ different฀ struggles฀ or฀ localized฀ “histories”฀ are฀ parts฀ of฀a฀unique฀although฀differentiated฀process,฀and฀there฀is฀a฀distinction฀ between฀ description฀ of฀ a฀ past฀ reality฀ as฀ gathered฀ from฀ documentary฀ information฀ and฀ attempts฀ by฀ a฀ government฀ (or฀ intellectual฀ elite)฀ to฀ construct฀a฀particular฀narrative฀as฀well฀as฀a฀particular฀discourse.

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What฀is฀striking฀in฀Sarkar’s฀presentation฀of฀a฀particular฀struggle฀over฀ historical฀knowledge฀production฀is฀its฀grounding฀in฀reality,฀that฀is,฀in฀ concrete,฀present-day฀political฀struggles฀in฀India.5฀Indeed,฀it฀is฀a฀reality฀ that฀Sarkar฀has฀had฀serious฀censorship฀problems฀with฀his฀account฀of฀the฀ history฀of฀anti-colonial฀movements฀in฀India,฀because฀he฀stated,฀through฀ documentary฀evidence,฀that฀right-wing฀Hindu฀nationalist฀movements฀ such฀as฀those฀in฀power฀until฀April฀2004฀were฀conspicuously฀absent฀from฀ the฀fight฀for฀freedom.฀What฀is฀also฀striking฀is฀his฀outright฀disqualification฀ of฀ “old-fashioned,฀ discredited”฀ discourses฀ about฀ history,฀ as฀ opposed฀ to฀the฀ecumenical฀discourse฀of฀proliferation฀of฀discursive฀realities฀and฀ shifting฀perspectives฀of฀postcolonial฀theory.฀Sarkar’s฀position฀is฀clearly฀ grounded฀ in฀ a฀ “foundational”฀ and฀ “modernist”฀ paradigm฀ that฀ is฀ at฀ work฀both฀in฀the฀presentation฀of฀the฀past฀and฀in฀the฀struggle฀to฀spread฀ a฀particular฀knowledge฀of฀the฀past฀in฀the฀present฀and฀for฀present-day฀ struggles—namely,฀the฀struggle฀against฀the฀rise฀of฀a฀totalitarian฀state฀ (Sarkar฀1993,฀2000). To฀my฀mind,฀Kaviraj’s฀and฀Sarkar’s฀intellectual฀positions฀represent฀ two฀ different฀ politically฀ engaged฀ possibilities฀ in฀ the฀ struggle฀ against฀ hegemonic฀control฀of฀knowledge฀production,฀each฀with฀effective฀subversive฀power.฀The฀former฀says฀that฀we฀do฀not฀have฀to฀convince฀those฀ in฀ power฀ that฀ the฀ particular฀ knowledge฀ we฀ produce฀ is฀ valuable;฀ we฀ simply฀have฀to฀give฀it฀value฀on฀our฀own฀terms฀and฀ignore฀the฀center’s฀ (the฀West’s)฀unawareness฀of฀it.฀As฀a฀corollary,฀we฀will฀be฀empowered฀ to฀value฀nonscientific,฀nonrational,฀nonmodern฀(nonsecular,฀literary,฀ ritual,฀etc.)฀forms฀of฀knowledge฀if฀we฀so฀decide.฀The฀results฀of฀this฀project฀are฀the฀absolute฀incommensurability฀of฀forms฀of฀knowledge฀and฀ the฀“autonomy”฀of฀the฀subaltern฀consciousness฀(Pouchepadass฀2000:฀ 177–82).฀Although฀this฀sounds฀radical,฀I฀believe฀it฀is฀an฀expression฀of฀the฀ liberal,฀willful฀notion฀that฀one฀is฀free฀to฀make฀history฀as฀one฀wishes. But฀what฀does฀incommensurability฀entail?฀It฀entails฀the฀impossibility฀ of฀comparison฀and฀generalization,฀thereby฀impairing฀the฀construction฀ of฀grand฀narratives,฀including฀new฀emancipatory฀narratives฀to฀replace฀ discredited฀modernist฀ones฀(see฀Dirlik฀2000;฀Pouchepadass฀2000:฀181).฀ It฀entails฀the฀impossibility฀of฀abstraction฀across฀localized,฀diverse,฀and฀ often฀contradictory฀experiences฀of฀knowledge฀production.฀It฀entails฀the฀ impossibility฀of฀a฀common฀“project”฀(is฀this฀exclusively฀a฀modernist฀ concept฀as฀well?)฀of฀any฀sort,฀because฀of฀the฀endless฀dynamics฀of฀fragmentation฀(in฀time฀and฀space).฀How฀do฀we฀deal฀with฀propositions฀that฀ eschew฀comparison฀as฀a฀foundational฀principle?฀With฀propositions฀that฀ preclude฀a฀unified฀language฀of฀some฀sort฀that฀would฀make฀communication,฀and฀hence฀collective฀action,฀possible?฀What฀are฀the฀concrete฀

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political฀realities฀of฀such฀projects?฀Theoretically,฀anthropologists฀have฀ dealt฀with฀the฀issue฀of฀comparison฀and฀incommensurability฀for฀a฀long฀ time฀and฀have฀produced฀concepts฀such฀as฀“emic”฀and฀“etic”฀in฀an฀attempt฀ to฀resolve฀it.฀As฀we฀all฀know,฀these฀concepts฀are฀tricky฀(because฀they฀ entail฀the฀objectification฀of฀anthropological฀subjects)฀but฀useful฀(because฀ they฀attempt฀to฀bridge฀the฀incommensurability฀of฀radically฀different฀ forms฀of฀knowledge฀production฀and฀to฀enable฀communication). The฀case฀of฀Sarkar,฀on฀the฀other฀hand,฀illustrates฀the฀struggle฀for฀control฀of฀the฀locations฀of฀knowledge฀production฀in฀a฀concrete฀situation.฀ Although฀ he฀ underlined,฀ in฀ his฀ view฀ of฀ history,฀ the฀ multiplicity฀ of฀ struggles฀ that฀ converged฀ in฀ the฀ anti-British฀ struggle,฀ he฀ defended฀ a฀ “modern”฀unitary฀conception฀of฀social฀history฀in฀which฀different฀forms฀ of฀struggle,฀predicated฀on฀different฀experiences฀of฀reality฀and฀different฀ (but฀not฀autonomous)฀forms฀of฀consciousness,฀were฀linked฀to฀a฀unitary฀ movement฀ of฀ history฀ through฀ reference฀ to฀ a฀ “real฀ reality.”฀ It฀ is฀ also฀ significant฀that฀his฀particular฀modernist฀version฀of฀history฀was฀related฀ to฀a฀modernist฀political฀emancipatory฀project,฀that฀of฀trying฀to฀counter฀ the฀right-wing฀nationalist฀Indian฀government’s฀control฀of฀knowledge฀ production.

Responsibility฀and฀Communication฀in฀a฀World฀ Network The฀cases฀I฀have฀presented฀illustrate฀the฀different฀stances฀taken฀by฀social฀ scientists฀involved฀in฀transformative฀projects฀of฀reality.฀I฀return฀now฀to฀ my฀initial฀story,฀that฀of฀the฀Andalusian฀anthropologist฀Isidoro฀Moreno,฀ his฀particular฀way฀of฀knowledge฀production,฀and฀how฀one฀might฀deal฀ with฀it฀in฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀network. Is฀it฀possible฀for฀a฀worldwide฀“scientific”฀community฀of฀anthropologists฀ to฀be฀sufficiently฀open฀to฀others’฀passions฀to฀be฀able฀to฀communicate฀ with฀scholars฀who฀are฀working฀in฀their฀native฀locations?฀To฀achieve฀ this฀goal,฀such฀anthropologists฀will฀have฀to฀partly฀renounce฀the฀distancing฀and฀“objectivity”฀of฀the฀conventional฀professional฀anthropologist,฀ a฀ distancing฀ that฀ the฀ coeval฀ experience฀ of฀ fieldwork฀ belies.฀ But฀ is฀ it฀ possible฀for฀anthropologists฀to฀be฀open฀to฀concepts฀and฀paradigms฀of฀ knowledge฀that฀are฀alien฀from฀the฀one฀they฀hold฀(whatever฀it฀may฀be)฀ or฀the฀one฀that฀is฀hegemonic฀in฀the฀academy?6฀How฀is฀the฀participation฀of฀anthropologists฀such฀as฀Moreno฀and฀historians฀such฀as฀Sarkar฀ in฀the฀struggles฀and฀debates฀of฀their฀own฀societies฀different฀from฀the฀ methodological฀oxymoron฀of฀anthropology,฀“participant฀observation”?฀ How฀is฀the฀fact฀of฀having฀a฀project฀for฀the฀transformation฀of฀the฀society฀

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we฀live฀in,฀observe,฀and฀study฀different฀from฀“social฀engineering”?฀What฀ makes฀it฀different?฀(We฀should฀keep฀in฀mind฀that฀often฀an฀“emancipatory”฀ intention฀or฀discourse฀is฀an฀important฀part฀of฀the฀political฀agendas฀of฀ both฀right฀and฀left.)฀Who฀decides? The฀ first฀ thing฀ we฀ have฀ to฀ deal฀ with฀ is฀ that฀ anthropologists฀ (and฀ other฀social฀scientists)฀who฀are฀engaged฀in฀a฀political฀project฀use฀stable฀ concepts฀and฀unitary฀laws฀of฀movement฀(whatever฀they฀may฀be).฀If฀their฀ objective฀is฀to฀transform฀reality,฀then฀they฀must฀have฀a฀realist฀(not฀just฀ discursive)฀sense฀of฀reality.฀They฀will฀need฀categories฀adequate฀to฀the฀ political฀projects฀they฀wish฀to฀engage฀in฀(this฀has฀always฀been฀the฀practice฀ among฀those฀holding฀power,฀as฀well฀as฀among฀those฀wanting฀to฀become฀ empowered),฀ and฀ they฀ will฀ need฀ a฀ structure฀ of฀ meaning฀ that฀ makes฀ explicit฀the฀relationship฀between฀those฀categories฀and฀the฀relationship฀ between฀ categories,฀ analyses฀ of฀ reality,฀ and฀ the฀ transformation฀ of฀ reality—that฀is,฀a฀link฀through฀experience฀that฀connects฀consciousness฀ with฀practice฀(Dirlik฀2000;฀O’Hanlon฀and฀Washbrook฀1992).฀Moreover,฀ they฀will฀aim฀not฀so฀much฀at฀fragmenting฀realities฀as฀at฀producing฀a฀ collective฀will฀(Gramsci฀1987฀[1929–35]:฀185). The฀ knowledge฀ produced฀ by฀ and฀ for฀ political฀ engagement฀ on฀ the฀ ground฀eliminates฀distancing฀and฀tends฀to฀create฀stable,฀unitary,฀and฀ directional฀ frameworks฀ and฀ concepts฀ of฀ the฀ “modernist”฀ type.฀ This฀ type฀ of฀ knowledge฀ is฀ based฀ on฀ a฀ sense฀ of฀ responsibility฀ that฀ clearly฀ establishes฀ the฀ relationship฀ between฀ the฀ anthropologist฀ and฀ those฀ he฀ or฀ she฀ observes,฀ the฀ issues฀ that฀ must฀ be฀ explored฀ to฀ gain฀ better฀ knowledge฀and฀set฀forth฀some฀kind฀of฀organized,฀transformative฀project,฀ and฀the฀concepts฀and฀models฀that฀should฀be฀developed฀for฀it.฀Engaged฀ anthropologists฀in฀the฀1960s,฀such฀as฀Kathleen฀Gough฀(1968),฀represent฀ an฀earlier฀expression฀of฀this฀sense฀of฀responsibility.฀But฀outlining฀the฀ framework฀of฀mutual฀responsibility฀between฀those฀participating฀in฀a฀ coeval฀ reality฀ that฀ is฀ meant฀ to฀ be฀ crystallized฀ as฀ knowledge฀ of฀ some฀ kind฀is,฀I฀contend,฀the฀only฀way฀in฀which฀we฀can฀create฀a฀real฀space฀for฀ communication.฀ Responsibility฀ is฀ what฀ links฀ knowledge฀ production฀ to฀reality,฀real฀people,฀real฀suffering,฀real฀power.฀Responsibility฀is฀what฀ makes฀ knowledge฀ into฀ a฀ project.฀ “Participant฀ observation,”฀ on฀ the฀ contrary,฀is฀what฀creates฀distancing฀out฀of฀ethnographic฀fieldwork—฀ an฀ experience฀ that฀ inevitably฀ creates฀ responsibilities฀ while฀ it฀ lasts.฀฀ But฀is฀distancing฀necessary฀in฀order฀to฀create฀some฀grounds฀for฀comparison,฀some฀shared฀discourse฀across฀places฀and฀types฀of฀knowledge?฀ My฀ feeling฀ is฀ that฀ some฀ distancing฀ is฀ necessary฀ if฀ what฀ we฀ aim฀ for฀ is฀communication฀and,฀as฀Raymond฀Williams฀said,฀through฀tensions,฀ growth฀(1961).

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But฀we฀have฀other฀obstacles฀to฀deal฀with฀if฀we฀aim฀to฀create฀this฀planetary฀ space฀ of฀ anthropological฀ encounter.฀ One,฀ obviously,฀ is฀ language.฀ To฀ be฀forced฀to฀use฀International฀English฀in฀order฀to฀communicate฀more฀ widely฀is฀in฀itself฀an฀aspect฀of฀oppression฀and฀dependency฀(Comelles฀ 2002;฀ Kaviraj฀ 2000),฀ but฀ I฀ will฀ not฀ expand฀ on฀ this฀ issue.฀ I฀ am฀ more฀ preoccupied฀with฀local฀political฀struggles฀and฀knowledge฀legitimation฀ processes฀and฀with฀the฀frequent฀unawareness฀we฀have฀of฀them฀when฀ approaching฀the฀production฀of฀our฀local฀colleagues.฀From฀the฀distance฀ of฀another฀place฀and฀a฀different฀disciplinary฀history,฀the฀anthropologist฀ often฀approaches฀those฀local฀knowledge฀production฀struggles฀without฀ any฀background—as฀we฀say฀in฀Spanish,฀sin฀conocimiento฀de฀causa. I฀have฀always฀been฀surprised฀by฀the฀“errors฀of฀judgment”฀some฀of฀my฀ foreign฀colleagues฀make฀about฀the฀work฀and฀political฀positioning฀of฀some฀ of฀my฀Spanish฀colleagues.฀I฀myself฀make฀judgments฀from฀my฀particular฀ academic฀experience,฀linked฀to฀a฀particular฀history฀of฀the฀discipline฀in฀ Spain,฀and฀from฀my฀political฀position฀regarding฀present-day฀issues฀in฀ Spain฀(and฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀world).฀Yet฀however฀biased฀my฀appreciation฀ of฀the฀knowledge฀produced฀by฀my฀anthropologist฀colleagues฀may฀be,฀I฀ can฀situate฀that฀knowledge฀in฀concrete฀practices฀and฀particular฀histories฀ that฀help฀me฀understand฀what฀they฀are฀really฀saying,฀sometimes,฀under฀ the฀latest฀conceptual฀jargon฀borrowed฀from฀abroad฀(Narotzky฀2002).฀My฀ foreign฀friends฀and฀colleagues฀with฀political฀positions฀and฀biases฀similar฀ to฀mine฀are฀incapable฀of฀reading฀between฀the฀lines฀until฀they฀become฀ aware฀of฀the฀local฀histories฀and฀struggles.฀My฀question฀is,฀How฀do฀we฀ build฀the฀criteria฀necessary฀for฀understanding฀the฀work฀of฀colleagues฀ whose฀disciplinary฀histories฀and฀political฀positioning฀with฀respect฀to฀ real-world฀issues฀we฀ignore?฀Is฀this฀an฀unnecessary฀preoccupation?฀Is฀ blind฀openness฀a฀“good”฀per฀se?฀Can฀knowledge,฀through฀exchange,฀ appear฀as฀detached฀from฀its฀process฀of฀production?฀What฀sort฀of฀vision฀ do฀we฀have฀of฀knowledge฀flows฀as฀different฀from฀the฀actual฀“market”฀of฀ knowledge?฀Would฀it฀be฀that฀of฀a฀system฀of฀generalized฀reciprocity? Let฀me฀recount฀another฀story฀about฀Spanish฀anthropology฀that฀shows฀ the฀ differential฀ positioning฀ of฀ native฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ local฀ power฀ struggles฀and฀how฀it฀affects฀knowledge฀production.฀In฀February฀2000,฀ a฀pogrom-like฀event฀took฀place฀against฀North฀African฀immigrants฀in฀ the฀town฀of฀El฀Ejido,฀Almería฀(Andalusia),฀a฀town฀then฀governed฀by฀the฀ Partido฀Popular฀(PP),฀a฀party฀of฀the฀political฀right.฀Under฀the฀eyes฀of฀ the฀complacent฀local฀police,฀who฀failed฀to฀intervene,฀Spanish฀residents฀ attacked฀immigrants฀in฀an฀organized฀way,฀destroying฀their฀property,฀ desecrating฀ their฀ cult฀ space,฀ and฀ driving฀ them฀ to฀ the฀ mountains฀ to฀ seek฀refuge.฀For฀the฀PP,฀the฀event฀represented฀a฀spontaneous฀burst฀of฀

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anger฀from฀the฀Spanish฀residents฀over฀the฀immigrants’฀nonintegrating฀ practices฀and฀criminal฀behavior฀(the฀cause฀of฀the฀pogrom฀reportedly฀ was฀the฀alleged฀murder฀of฀a฀local฀girl฀by฀a฀Moroccan฀immigrant). What฀I฀am฀interested฀in฀exposing฀in฀this฀case฀is฀the฀participation฀of฀ Spanish฀anthropologists฀as฀“experts”฀in฀the฀production฀of฀knowledge฀ about฀this฀event฀and,฀more฀generally,฀issues฀surrounding฀immigration฀ policies฀ and฀ multiculturalism.฀ Before฀ the฀ events฀ took฀ place,฀ several฀ anthropologists฀from฀Andalusia,฀such฀as฀Emma฀Martín฀(University฀of฀ Seville)฀and฀Fernando฀Checa฀(University฀of฀Granada),฀had฀been฀doing฀ fieldwork฀ in฀ the฀ area฀ of฀ the฀ Poniente฀ Almeriense,฀ where฀ El฀ Ejido฀ is฀ located,฀trying฀to฀evaluate฀the฀realities฀of฀immigrant฀workers’฀lives฀in฀ intensive฀hothouse฀agriculture.฀Martín’s฀work,฀part฀of฀a฀larger฀project฀ including฀other฀Spanish฀regions฀(Martín,฀Melis,฀and฀Sanz฀2001),฀was฀ being฀co-financed฀by฀the฀European฀Union฀and฀the฀Junta฀de฀Andalucía฀(the฀ autonomous฀government฀in฀the฀hands฀of฀the฀social-democratic฀Partido฀ Socialista฀Obrero฀Español).฀Their฀work฀was฀mainly฀empirical฀but฀clearly฀ related฀to฀a฀loosely฀“political฀economic”฀framework,฀highlighting฀the฀ effects฀of฀transnational฀economic฀processes฀and฀national฀exclusionary฀ policies.฀ An฀ anthropologist฀ from฀ Madrid,฀ Ubaldo฀ Martínez฀ Veiga฀ (Universidad฀Autónoma฀Madrid)฀was฀also฀doing฀fieldwork฀in฀the฀area฀ (Martínez฀Veiga฀2001).฀Close฀to฀the฀labor฀union฀Comisiones฀Obreras,฀ on฀the฀political฀left,฀he฀was฀moved฀to฀respond฀to฀the฀role฀of฀the฀unions฀ in฀organizing฀and฀defending฀immigrant฀workers’฀rights.฀The฀work฀he฀ produced฀was฀very฀theoretical฀and฀framed฀in฀a฀strong฀political-economy฀ conceptual฀structure. After฀ the฀ events,฀ these฀ anthropologists฀ became฀ vocal฀ about฀ the฀ knowledge฀they฀had฀produced,฀participating฀in฀many฀local฀forums฀such฀ as฀union฀meetings฀and฀meetings฀of฀immigrants’฀associations.7฀All฀of฀ them฀told฀how฀they฀experienced฀forms฀of฀intimidation,฀from฀censorship฀ to฀threats฀against฀their฀lives.8฀Some฀months฀after฀the฀events฀of฀El฀Ejido,฀ on฀15฀December฀2000,฀the฀Spanish฀Senate,฀with฀a฀PP฀majority,฀approved฀ a฀new฀Ley฀de฀Extranjería฀(law฀of฀foreigners),฀excluding฀illegal฀immigrants฀ from฀basic฀civil฀rights฀such฀as฀the฀rights฀of฀association,฀public฀meeting,฀ union฀membership,฀health,฀and฀education.฀On฀4฀January฀2001,฀twelve฀ immigrants฀ died฀ in฀ Lorca,฀ Murcia,฀ in฀ a฀ car฀ accident฀ while฀ trying฀ to฀ avoid฀police฀controls฀as฀they฀drove฀to฀work฀as฀agricultural฀day฀laborers฀ in฀the฀informal฀economy.฀In฀the฀application฀of฀the฀new฀law,฀repression฀ hit฀ the฀ victims:฀ illegal฀ immigrants฀ in฀ the฀ area฀ were฀ expelled฀ from฀ the฀ country฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ apply฀ for฀ legal฀ admission.฀ Local฀ agricultural฀ entrepreneurs฀in฀Lorca฀were฀exonerated฀from฀any฀legal฀responsibility฀ for฀their฀exploitive฀and฀inhuman฀labor฀practices฀regarding฀immigrants.฀

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Immigrants,฀for฀their฀part,฀explicitly฀pointed฀to฀the฀new฀foreigners฀law฀ as฀having฀prompted฀the฀fatal฀accident. In฀ this฀ context฀ the฀ PP฀ government฀ created฀ an฀ institution฀ called฀ Foro฀de฀la฀Integración฀de฀los฀Inmigrantes฀(Forum฀for฀the฀Integration฀ of฀Immigrants)฀and฀named฀as฀its฀president฀an฀anthropologist,฀Mikel฀ Azurmendi,฀a฀former฀member฀of฀the฀Basque฀nationalist฀group฀ETA฀who฀ is฀presently฀in฀“exile”฀from฀the฀Basque฀country฀after฀allegedly฀receiving฀ death฀threats฀from฀ETA฀and฀who฀is฀now฀close฀to฀the฀PP’s฀views฀and฀policies฀ against฀ peripheral฀ nationalism฀ and฀ immigration.฀ Soon฀ Azurmendi฀ produced฀a฀book,฀Estampas฀del฀Ejido฀(2001),฀and฀numerous฀newspaper฀ contributions฀ (Azurmendi฀ 2002a,฀ 2002b)฀ in฀ which฀ he฀ explained฀ the฀ events฀as฀a฀conflict฀between฀cultures.฀Immigrants,฀he฀wrote,฀lacked฀a฀ proper฀“work฀culture”฀and฀“democratic฀tradition”฀and฀were฀responsible฀ for฀upsetting฀local฀ways,฀which฀justified฀the฀government’s฀repressive฀ policies฀toward฀them. Many฀anthropologists฀who฀did฀not฀share฀Azurmendi’s฀views฀reacted฀ strongly฀to฀them.฀Isidoro฀Moreno,฀then฀president฀of฀the฀Anthropological฀ Associations฀of฀the฀Spanish฀State฀(FAAEE),฀together฀with฀Emma฀Martín,฀ wrote฀a฀document฀protesting฀Azurmendi’s฀positions฀and฀questioning฀ his฀ professional฀ capacity,฀ which฀ was฀ sent฀ to฀ be฀ signed฀ by฀ all฀ other฀ academic฀anthropologists.9฀The฀original฀mailing฀list฀consisted฀of฀129฀ anthropologists฀ tenured฀ in฀ universities;฀ 63฀ people,฀ including฀ some฀ nontenured฀ faculty,฀ signed฀ the฀ letter—approximately฀ 50฀ percent฀ of฀ the฀original฀list.฀It฀is฀difficult฀to฀assess฀people’s฀reasons฀for฀supporting฀ or฀not฀supporting฀such฀a฀corporate฀move,฀one฀intended฀to฀defend฀the฀ anthropological฀profession฀against฀an฀“alien฀body”฀(Azurmendi).฀Many฀ who฀signed฀the฀document฀would฀not฀have฀written฀it฀in฀the฀same฀way฀ but฀felt฀that฀it฀helped฀position฀anthropology฀in฀a฀particular฀framework฀ of฀responsibility.฀Many฀who฀did฀not฀sign฀also฀had฀corporate฀reasons,฀ such฀as฀not฀voicing฀public฀criticism฀of฀a฀colleague.฀Others฀may฀have฀ declined฀ to฀ sign฀ for฀ pragmatic฀ reasons:฀ government฀ agencies฀ offer฀ a฀ great฀deal฀of฀funding฀for฀research฀on฀immigration.฀Still฀others฀plainly฀ supported฀Azurmendi’s฀views. Where฀does฀this฀leave฀us฀in฀terms฀of฀gauging฀the฀value฀of฀knowledge฀ produced฀in฀peripheral฀locations,฀or฀in฀any฀other฀locations,฀for฀that฀ matter?฀It฀is฀often฀the฀case฀that฀we฀ignore฀the฀practices฀and฀realities฀that฀ create฀a฀context฀for฀understanding฀the฀meanings฀that฀others฀produce.฀The฀ postcolonial฀critique฀has฀often฀essentialized฀nonhegemonic฀locations฀ in฀the฀production฀of฀knowledge,฀as฀it฀has฀essentialized฀Euro-American฀ locations.฀But฀as฀the฀case฀I฀have฀just฀presented฀shows,฀the฀production฀of฀ anthropological฀knowledge฀in฀the฀peripheries฀and฀elsewhere฀is฀diverse:฀

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it฀involves฀complex฀power฀relationships฀and฀mutually฀contradictory฀ projects.฀It฀is฀attached฀to฀multiple฀political฀agendas฀spanning฀both฀right฀ and฀left,฀both฀the฀justification฀and฀support฀of฀governmental฀policies฀and฀ criticism฀of฀them,฀and฀both฀“institutional”฀and฀“alternative”฀forms฀of฀ agitation.฀I฀am฀not฀proposing฀censorship:฀I฀may฀learn฀a฀lot฀from฀reading฀ Azurmendi฀(one฀has฀to฀know฀the฀arguments฀of฀one’s฀opponents),฀and฀I฀ want฀to฀know฀what฀he฀has฀to฀say฀as฀an฀anthropologist.฀But฀in฀order฀to฀be฀ able฀to฀appreciate฀his฀knowledge฀and฀make฀something฀of฀it—that฀is,฀in฀ order฀for฀the฀communication฀of฀that฀knowledge฀to฀be฀truly฀possible—I฀ need฀to฀know฀where฀he฀stands฀on฀real-life฀issues. “Scientific”฀detachment฀has฀made฀us฀believe฀that฀knowledge฀can฀flow฀ and฀be฀communicated฀without฀being฀grounded,฀not฀only฀with฀respect฀ to฀the฀author฀but฀also฀to฀the฀historical฀context฀of฀its฀production.฀And฀ it฀is฀partly฀so:฀that฀is฀how฀we฀read฀most฀of฀what฀we฀read฀in฀our฀Western฀ hegemonic฀context฀of฀knowledge฀production.฀But฀we฀always฀have฀some฀ clues,฀ precisely฀ because฀ the฀ hegemony฀ has฀ produced฀ a฀ small฀ world.฀ We฀know฀which฀sorts฀of฀journals฀publish฀what;฀we฀read฀an฀author’s฀ acknowledgments฀and฀get฀an฀idea฀of฀his฀or฀her฀personal฀context;฀we฀ know฀about฀political฀positioning฀in฀the฀US฀academy฀because฀it฀is฀well฀ covered,฀discussed,฀and฀publicized฀in฀the฀many฀forums฀open฀to฀it.฀But฀ we฀do฀not฀have฀the฀same฀sort฀of฀knowledge฀about฀India,฀or฀China,฀or฀ Morocco,฀or฀Russia,฀to฀name฀but฀a฀few.฀Would฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀ network฀provide฀a฀space฀in฀which฀not฀only฀to฀access฀detached฀forms฀of฀ knowledge฀but฀also฀to฀situate฀them฀in฀their฀production฀processes?

World฀Anthropologies:฀A฀Realist฀Proposal We฀return฀now฀to฀the฀need฀to฀communicate฀our฀knowledge฀and฀to฀create฀ growth฀out฀of฀communication.฀How฀might฀this฀be฀possible฀within฀the฀ politicized฀ environment฀ I฀ have฀ described,฀ in฀ which฀ anthropologists฀ who฀work฀“at฀home,”฀who฀“lack฀distancing,”฀participate฀in฀the฀very฀ real฀issues฀and฀debates฀that฀produce฀the฀present?฀Should฀we,฀following฀ Herzfeld,฀discard฀“epistemological฀nativism”฀as฀unscientific฀and฀engage฀ with฀it฀only฀as฀an฀object฀of฀study?฀Should฀we,฀following฀Taussig,฀opt฀for฀ self-contained฀characterizations฀of฀passionate฀experience?฀Should฀we,฀ following฀the฀lead฀of฀Kaviraj,฀ignore฀what฀we฀do฀not฀know?฀The฀problem฀ is฀difficult฀to฀solve฀and฀is฀a฀classical฀anthropological฀problem฀after฀all,฀ spiced฀with฀history฀and฀politics฀and฀the฀Damocles฀sword฀of฀postcolonial฀ and฀Foucauldian฀critique.฀It฀is฀the฀problem฀of฀incommensurability฀and฀ comparison,฀of฀detachment฀and฀participation,฀of฀the฀degree฀to฀which฀ knowledge฀production฀is฀political฀from฀the฀outset,฀and฀of฀the฀need฀for฀ communication.

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As฀I฀see฀it,฀there฀is฀no฀way฀out฀of฀political฀positioning฀in฀the฀production฀ of฀anthropological฀knowledge.฀The฀postmodern฀critique฀has฀made฀us฀ aware฀ of฀ the฀ profound฀ political฀ implications฀ of฀ seemingly฀ objective฀ forms฀ of฀ knowledge฀ that฀ are฀ nevertheless฀ enmeshed฀ in฀ particular฀ regimes฀of฀truth.฀But฀should฀we฀discard฀everything฀we฀know฀that฀was฀ produced฀from฀a฀particular฀(intended฀or฀unintended)฀political฀position?฀ Can฀we฀learn฀nothing฀from฀Aristotle,฀Aquinas,฀Hegel,฀Arguedas,฀Rivers,฀ or฀Malinowski,฀for฀example?฀We฀undoubtedly฀can.฀So฀how฀should฀we฀ proceed?฀We฀situate฀them฀and฀their฀concepts฀in฀a฀historical฀context,฀ a฀reality฀of฀the฀past฀that฀gives฀a฀particular฀meaning฀to฀what฀they฀said.฀ Then฀we฀proceed฀analogically,฀bringing฀those฀descriptions฀of฀reality,฀ those฀concepts฀and฀structural฀frameworks,฀to฀bear฀on฀the฀present฀reality฀ we฀want฀to฀explain.฀We฀stretch฀the฀concepts;฀we฀confront฀them;฀we฀ create฀new฀ones฀out฀of฀a฀creative฀synthesis฀with฀other฀concepts฀from฀ other฀times฀and฀thinkers.฀We฀produce฀a฀new฀framework฀or฀modify฀an฀ older฀ one฀ to฀ give฀ meaning฀ to฀ the฀ relations฀ among฀ the฀ concepts฀ we฀ use฀in฀reference฀to฀the฀reality฀we฀want฀to฀understand฀and฀change฀(or฀ support). In฀anthropology,฀moreover,฀we฀use฀ethnographic฀descriptions฀(however฀ critical฀ we฀ are฀ about฀ the฀ way฀ in฀ which฀ they฀ were฀ produced)฀ as฀ material฀for฀comparison.฀We฀adopt฀in฀this฀regard฀something฀similar฀to฀ the฀suspension฀of฀disbelief฀that฀realist฀fiction฀entails:฀we฀must฀trust฀that฀ some฀reference฀to฀“real”฀reality฀exists฀in฀the฀description.฀We฀need฀to฀ proceed฀in฀this฀way,฀through฀conversation฀with฀works฀of฀very฀different฀ kinds,฀in฀order฀to฀grow฀in฀our฀thinking฀about฀reality.฀And฀to฀be฀able฀ to฀ do฀ that฀ in฀ a฀ creative฀ way,฀ we฀ need฀ explicitness—that฀ is,฀ we฀ need฀ to฀ be฀ told฀ (or฀ to฀ know฀ or฀ learn)฀ what฀ the฀ author’s฀ political฀ project฀ was.฀This฀will฀empower฀us฀to฀understand฀his฀or฀her฀work฀better฀and฀ to฀relocate฀knowledge฀in฀reference฀to฀a฀concrete฀reality.฀We฀can฀learn฀ something฀from฀discourses฀that฀are฀alien฀to฀our฀concrete฀reality฀and฀to฀ our฀theoretical฀framework฀only฀if฀the฀author’s฀responsibility฀in฀relation฀ to฀ his฀ or฀ her฀ reality฀ is฀ clearly฀ outlined,฀ if฀ an฀ effort฀ is฀ made฀ toward฀ explicitness.฀Then฀we฀will฀be฀able฀to฀place฀that฀knowledge฀or฀its฀critique฀ in฀our฀theoretical฀framework฀and฀proceed฀toward฀our฀own฀project. Ignasi฀Terradas฀(University฀of฀Barcelona)฀proposed฀something฀similar฀ with฀his฀reappraisal฀of฀the฀methodology฀of฀“ethnographic฀realism”: To฀ the฀ extent฀ that฀ the฀ ethnography฀ exists,฀ it฀ exists฀ as฀ a฀ thing฀ in฀ the฀ Durkheimian฀sense฀and฀in฀the฀Marxist฀sense.฀Objectivity฀and฀alienation฀ are฀the฀stereotypes฀of฀the฀failed฀ethnography.฀Subjectivity฀and฀metonymy฀ are฀ those฀ of฀ a฀ pseudo-ethnography.฀ The฀ realist฀ ethnography฀ moves฀ in฀ between฀ a฀ reality฀ that฀ always฀ exceeds฀ it฀ and฀ a฀ theorization฀ that฀ is฀ an฀

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approximation฀.฀.฀.฀Judgments฀about฀ethnographies฀must฀come฀from฀their฀ mutual฀confrontation.฀If฀not,฀we฀will฀get฀not฀ethnographic฀knowledge฀ but฀ psychological,฀ stylistic,฀ moral,฀ political,฀ etc.฀ [knowledge]฀.฀.฀.฀ The฀ inter-ethnographic฀ dialogue฀ is฀ what฀ realizes฀ the฀ appropriate฀ and฀ wide฀ meaning฀of฀the฀ethnography.฀That฀is฀its฀real฀meaning,฀that฀which฀appears฀ in฀the฀context฀of฀the฀flow฀of฀ethnographies฀itself.฀(Terradas฀1993:฀120)

For฀Terradas,฀it฀is฀the฀relationship฀between฀ethnographies฀that฀constitutes฀ anthropology฀as฀“a฀scientific฀(analytic)฀and฀artistic฀(evocative)฀reality”฀ (1993:฀120).฀And฀it฀was฀the฀possibility฀of฀apprehending฀the฀distinction฀ between฀description฀and฀interpretation฀in฀ethnographic฀writing฀that฀ constituted฀the฀epistemological฀break฀in฀anthropology: Our฀point฀of฀departure฀now฀is฀that฀realist฀ethnographic฀composition฀and฀ anthropological฀ theory฀ have฀ to฀ come฀ from฀ the฀ total฀ confrontation฀ of฀ several฀ethnographies฀.฀.฀.฀the฀pioneering฀efforts฀of฀anthropologists฀at฀the฀ beginning฀of฀this฀[the฀twentieth]฀century฀lay฀in฀their฀forecasting฀of฀such฀ a฀ confrontation.฀ That฀ was฀ the฀ reason฀ they฀ made฀ the฀ effort฀ to฀ provide฀ an฀ explicitness฀ without฀ precedent฀ in฀ their฀ descriptions,฀ methods,฀ and฀ theories.฀The฀ethnographic฀text฀that฀reaches฀us฀after฀this฀epistemological฀ break,฀which฀we฀can฀easily฀characterize฀as฀the฀revolution฀of฀explicitness฀ in฀anthropology,฀is฀what฀distinguishes฀ethnographic฀realism฀and฀marks฀ an฀important฀stage฀in฀the฀history฀of฀the฀discipline.฀(Terradas฀1993:฀121)

Terradas฀points฀to฀the฀importance฀of฀ethnography฀in฀our฀discipline,฀but฀ it฀is฀an฀ethnography฀whose฀aim฀is฀to฀transcend฀a฀particular฀experience฀ through฀its฀aprioristic฀will฀to฀communicate฀with฀other฀ethnographies฀ and,฀through฀this฀unending฀exercise,฀to฀try฀to฀better฀understand฀reality.฀ If฀it฀is฀true฀that฀the฀production฀of฀ethnographic฀knowledge฀has฀to฀be฀ historicized,฀it฀is฀nevertheless฀our฀particular฀link฀to฀reality฀as฀a฀social฀ science,฀and฀we฀should฀relearn฀to฀deal฀with฀it.฀It฀is฀from฀within฀our฀ ethnographic฀practice฀(intertwining฀experience,฀thinking,฀and฀writing)฀ that฀communication฀with฀other฀anthropologists’฀work฀can฀proceed— but฀also,฀unappealingly,฀the฀will฀to฀communicate฀has฀to฀be฀part฀of฀the฀ life฀and฀growth฀of฀anthropology฀from฀the฀start.฀It฀is฀from฀our฀reference฀ to฀lived฀reality—a฀unitary,฀contemporaneous,฀and฀shared฀reality—that฀ modes฀of฀responsibility฀can฀be฀made฀explicit.฀I฀believe฀that฀both฀distance฀ and฀participation฀are฀necessary฀for฀communication฀to฀take฀place฀and฀ that฀political฀projects฀are฀an฀unavoidable฀reality฀of฀the฀products฀of฀social฀ scientists.฀Only฀hegemonic฀forms฀of฀knowledge฀present฀themselves฀as฀ apolitical.

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Notes I฀thank฀all฀the฀participants฀in฀the฀Wenner-Gren฀symposium฀“World฀Anthropologies”฀ for฀ the฀ insights฀ and฀ challenges฀ they฀ offered.฀ I฀ am฀ also฀ indebted฀ to฀ the฀ online฀ debates฀ of฀ participants฀ in฀ the฀ incipient฀ network,฀ including฀ Eduardo฀Restrepo฀and฀Penny฀Harvey,฀who฀were฀not฀part฀of฀the฀seminar.฀I฀am฀ particularly฀grateful฀to฀Gavin฀Smith,฀John฀Gledhill,฀and฀Lourdes฀Méndez฀for฀ their฀ comments฀ on฀ the฀ first฀ draft฀ of฀ this฀ chapter.฀ Lourdes฀ and฀ Juan฀ Igartua฀ also฀provided฀me฀with฀a฀hospitable฀environment฀in฀which฀to฀rework฀the฀draft,฀ while฀José฀Antonio฀Millán฀cared฀for฀our฀children,฀and฀I฀express฀my฀gratitude฀ to฀them. 1.฀I฀am฀indebted฀to฀Marisol฀de฀la฀Cadena฀for฀the฀concept฀of฀epistemological฀ tolerance฀and฀for฀making฀me฀think฀about฀this฀issue. 2.฀Josep฀Ramón฀Llobera฀was฀one฀of฀the฀few฀early฀“cosmopolitan”฀anthropologists฀ in฀ Spain.฀ In฀ a฀ letter฀ in฀ response฀ to฀ John฀ Corbin’s฀ (1989)฀ reaction฀ to฀ Isidoro฀Moreno’s฀criticism฀of฀foreign฀anthropologists’฀double฀colonization฀of฀ Spanish฀anthropology,฀Llobera,฀while฀generally฀supporting฀Moreno’s฀critique,฀ dismissed฀ his฀ “emotional฀ and฀ somewhat฀ chauvinistic฀ tirade฀ against”฀ those฀ anthropologists฀ (1989:25).฀ Llobera฀ pointed฀ to฀ the฀ change฀ of฀ position฀ of฀ Spanish฀anthropologists฀in฀the฀knowledge-production฀field฀of฀power:฀“Native฀ anthropologists,฀now฀not฀so฀naïve฀as฀before,฀trained฀in฀foreign฀languages฀and฀ even฀in฀British฀anthropology฀as฀they฀are,฀happen฀to฀be฀in฀a฀position฀to฀discover฀ blatant฀plagiarisms฀from฀Spanish฀theses,฀unacknowledged฀information฀given฀ by฀ Spanish฀ academics,฀ and฀ other฀ sins฀.฀.฀.฀ It฀ will฀ take฀ more฀ than฀ nice฀ words฀ to฀balance฀decades฀of฀asymmetric฀relationships฀in฀which฀Spanish฀academics฀ provided฀ anthropological฀ raw฀ material฀ and฀ consumed฀ ready-made฀ foreign฀ theories”฀(1989:25). 3.฀We฀may฀recall฀here฀Arjun฀Appadurai’s฀“gatekeeper฀concepts”฀in฀area฀studies฀ (1986)฀and฀Michael฀Herzfeld’s฀analysis฀of฀the฀creation฀of฀“fixed”฀concepts฀in฀ Mediterranean฀anthropology฀(1987). 4.฀The฀project฀Moreno฀presents฀is฀clearly฀a฀search฀for฀origins฀and฀history,฀oblivious฀of฀the฀Foucauldian฀emphasis฀on฀genealogies฀(Foucault฀1979฀[1971]). 5.฀During฀the฀Wenner-Gren฀symposium฀from฀which฀this฀book฀arose,฀Shiv฀ Visvanathan฀remarked฀to฀me฀that฀Sarkar฀had฀been฀involved฀in฀“official”฀politics฀ and฀ had฀ been฀ pampered฀ by฀ previous฀ governments.฀ He฀ had฀ then฀ supported฀ and฀ excluded฀ particular฀ histories฀ and฀ historians,฀ and฀ his฀ recent฀ harassment฀ had฀ to฀ be฀ understood฀ in฀ the฀ context฀ of฀ these฀ complex,฀ long-term฀ processes฀ in฀Indian฀politics฀and฀academia.฀In฀short,฀Visvanathan’s฀point฀was฀that฀Sarkar฀ was฀not฀an฀“innocent฀victim”฀in฀a฀good-guys-bad-guys฀scenario.฀His฀remark฀ lends฀support฀to฀my฀argument฀that฀grounding฀in฀scholars’฀political฀practices฀ is฀a฀crucial฀element฀for฀knowledge฀communication.

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6.฀It฀is฀remarkable฀how฀we฀are฀prepared฀to฀accept฀the฀hegemonic฀discourse— even฀if฀only฀to฀oppose฀it—and฀how฀in฀this฀process฀we฀often฀resort฀to฀adopting฀ and฀ adapting฀ a฀ large฀ part฀ of฀ its฀ conceptual฀ tools฀ and฀ driving฀ narratives.฀ Meanwhile,฀ we฀ tend฀ to฀ dismiss฀ without฀ second฀ thought฀ or,฀ more฀ often,฀ to฀ ignore฀nonhegemonic฀discourses฀about฀society. 7.฀ Another฀ anthropologist฀ from฀ the฀ Universidad฀ Autónoma฀ de฀ Madrid,฀ Carlos฀ Giménez,฀ who฀ worked฀ on฀ immigration฀ but฀ had฀ not฀ done฀ fieldwork฀ directly฀in฀that฀area,฀was฀also฀vocal฀during฀an฀early฀moment. 8.฀Martínez฀Veiga฀and฀Martín,฀personal฀communications. 9.฀ The฀ document฀ and฀ its฀ signatories฀ appeared฀ in฀ Página฀ Abierta,฀ no.฀ 128,฀ year฀12,฀pp.฀46–47.

e i g h t

Anthropology in a Postcolonial Africa The Survival Debate

Paul Nchoji Nkwi

A

frican฀anthropologists฀grew฀up฀in฀societies฀that฀were฀either฀colonized฀ or฀ recently฀ decolonized.฀ Westerners฀ initially฀ controlled฀ the฀ production฀ of฀ anthropological฀ knowledge,฀ and฀ the฀ result฀ was฀ functionalist฀ studies฀ that฀ were฀ explicitly฀ ahistorical฀ and฀ often฀ myopic฀ about฀colonialism.฀After฀the฀colonial฀period,฀the฀new฀nations฀of฀Africa฀ dismissed฀anthropology฀both฀as฀a฀cultivation฀of฀primitivism฀and฀as฀an฀ apologetic฀for฀colonialism.฀As฀all฀states฀do,฀the฀new฀nations฀rewarded฀ knowledge฀production฀that฀served฀state฀goals,฀and฀anthropology฀simply฀ did฀not฀figure฀into฀those฀goals฀during฀the฀early฀postcolonial฀years. While฀ new฀ nations฀ were฀ appearing฀ in฀ Africa,฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ Europe฀and฀North฀America฀remained฀mostly฀committed฀to฀the฀dispassionate฀study฀of฀cultures,฀looking฀upon฀knowledge฀production฀as฀tainted฀ if฀done฀on฀behalf฀of฀government฀or฀for฀policy฀purposes.฀African฀anthropologists฀were฀trapped฀in฀a฀terrible฀“catch-22”:฀the฀more฀they฀practiced฀ anthropology฀by฀the฀standards฀of฀the฀former฀colonial฀powers,฀the฀more฀ their฀governments฀regarded฀them฀as฀worthless,฀or฀worse;฀and฀the฀more฀ they฀worked฀to฀develop฀an฀anthropology฀that฀served฀the฀needs฀of฀the฀ state,฀the฀more฀their฀knowledge฀production฀was฀dismissed฀in฀European฀ and฀North฀American฀centers฀of฀anthropology. These฀ scholars฀ had฀ three฀ possible฀ solutions:฀ declare฀ anthropology฀ dead฀and฀try฀to฀legitimate฀themselves฀as฀social฀historians฀within฀Africa;฀ export฀themselves฀to฀the฀United฀States฀and฀Europe,฀the฀way฀many฀Third฀ World฀scholars฀of฀all฀disciplines฀have฀exported฀themselves;฀or฀change฀ the฀content฀of฀anthropology฀and฀search฀out฀the฀information฀required฀ 157

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by฀their฀governments.฀To฀most฀scholars,฀the฀first฀solution฀was฀defeatist฀ and฀unappealing.฀The฀second฀was฀appealing,฀but฀anthropologists฀were฀ not฀ needed฀ in฀ the฀ West฀ to฀ the฀ same฀ extent฀ that,฀ say,฀ chemists฀ and฀ engineers฀ were,฀ so฀ there฀ were฀ few฀ opportunities฀ for฀ emigration.฀ The฀ third฀ option฀ raised฀ a฀ serious฀ question:฀ would฀ involvement฀ in฀ policy฀ research฀ harm฀ anthropology฀ or฀ make฀ something฀ better฀ of฀ it?฀ In฀ the฀ end,฀the฀choice฀was฀made฀for฀African฀anthropologists฀by฀government฀ funding฀for฀research฀and฀university฀posts.฀Anthropologists฀would,฀in฀ fact,฀serve฀the฀research฀and฀teaching฀needs฀of฀the฀state. In฀this฀chapter฀I฀examine฀the฀ways฀in฀which฀African฀anthropologists฀ have฀developed฀knowledge฀within฀a฀particular฀set฀of฀state฀needs฀and฀ within฀a฀particular฀set฀of฀power฀relations.฀I฀focus฀on฀a฀particular฀effort,฀ the฀Pan฀African฀Association฀of฀Anthropologists฀(PAAA).฀Today,฀the฀PAAA฀ is฀a฀professional฀organization฀accepted฀by฀a฀once฀hostile฀community฀of฀ social฀scientists.฀This฀acceptance฀has฀dramatically฀affected฀the฀applied฀ dimensions฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀and฀the฀way฀anthropology฀is฀ taught฀and฀practiced฀in฀Africa.฀I฀begin฀with฀an฀overview฀of฀the฀anthropology฀ of฀ sub-Saharan฀ Africa฀ and฀ then฀ offer฀ a฀ history฀ of฀ the฀ PAAA.฀ The฀organization฀developed฀at฀a฀time฀when฀Western-trained฀African฀ anthropologists฀were฀renegotiating฀their฀place฀in฀the฀discipline,฀both฀ in฀Africa฀and฀internationally.฀The฀dilemma฀faced฀by฀African฀anthropologists—how฀to฀carry฀out฀investigations฀according฀to฀internationally฀ held฀canons฀of฀scientific฀practice฀while฀keeping฀faithful฀to฀the฀demand฀ for฀ immediately฀ useful฀ research฀ at฀ home—mirrors฀ that฀ of฀ all฀ Third฀ World฀academics,฀but฀the฀dilemma฀for฀African฀anthropologists฀is฀an฀ extreme฀case฀because฀of฀the฀discipline’s฀well-documented฀history฀as฀the฀ handmaiden฀of฀colonialism.

Africa’s฀Place฀in฀the฀World฀System From฀the฀beginning฀of฀colonial฀rule,฀anthropology฀in฀Africa—as฀the฀ study฀of฀human฀cultures฀and฀peoples—largely฀reflected฀the฀outsiders’฀ view฀ of฀ the฀ continent.฀ It฀ would฀ take฀ many฀ decades฀ for฀ Africans฀ to฀ articulate฀a฀view฀of฀themselves฀in฀relation฀to฀that฀outside฀world.฀When฀ anthropology฀emerged฀as฀a฀discipline฀in฀the฀1860s,฀Africa฀was฀not฀part฀ of฀ the฀ world฀ economic฀ system.฀ It฀ had฀ been฀ so,฀ four฀ hundred฀ years฀ earlier,฀but฀by฀the฀mid-nineteenth฀century฀scholars฀in฀Europe฀had฀long฀ forgotten฀this฀and฀saw฀Africa฀only฀as฀a฀backwater. It฀soon฀would฀be฀part฀of฀the฀world฀system฀again.฀The฀slave฀trade฀had฀ led฀to฀the฀creation฀of฀European฀stations฀on฀the฀African฀coast฀for฀the฀ recruitment฀of฀human฀capital.฀By฀the฀late฀nineteenth฀century,฀despite฀

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the฀abolition฀of฀slavery฀in฀most฀of฀the฀world,฀European฀nations฀were฀ jockeying฀for฀position฀and฀access฀to฀the฀human฀and฀other฀resources฀of฀ the฀continent.฀The฀treaty฀of฀Berlin,฀in฀1878,฀granted฀any฀“civilized฀state”฀ occupying฀a฀coastal฀African฀region฀the฀right฀to฀claim฀the฀hinterland.฀ This฀ could฀ be฀ achieved,฀ however,฀ only฀ by฀ occupation฀ (see฀ Ganiage฀ and฀Héméry฀1968:฀199),฀and฀so฀the฀scramble฀for฀Africa฀was฀on,฀with฀ a฀ massive฀ outpouring฀ of฀ explorers,฀ travelers,฀ and฀ missionaries฀ who฀ would฀shape฀future฀anthropological฀work฀on฀the฀continent.฀Just฀eight฀ years฀later,฀in฀1885,฀the฀jurisdictional฀disputes฀between฀rival฀European฀ countries฀ over฀ Africa฀ were฀ settled฀ with฀ the฀ recognition฀ of฀ territorial฀ claims฀(Sklar฀1985:฀1).฀Africa฀had฀become฀an฀integral฀part฀of฀the฀world฀ economic฀system฀as฀a฀supplier฀of฀basic฀resources. The฀establishment฀of฀the฀journal฀Présence฀Africaine฀in฀the฀1940s฀was฀a฀ reaction฀by฀African฀and฀African฀American฀intellectuals฀against฀what฀they฀ saw฀as฀a฀failure฀by฀Euro-American฀intellectuals฀to฀recognize฀adequately฀ Africa’s฀role฀in฀world฀history.฀Basil฀Davidson,฀in฀his฀book฀The฀Lost฀Cities฀ of฀Africa฀(1959),฀showed฀that฀sub-Saharan฀African฀history฀was,฀in฀fact,฀ an฀ integral฀ and฀ important฀ part฀ of฀ world฀ history.฀ This฀ reaction฀ later฀ developed฀into฀what฀came฀to฀be฀known฀as฀Pan-Africanism,฀which฀was฀ to฀be฀a฀powerful฀influence฀on฀many฀of฀Africa’s฀early฀postcolonial฀leaders฀ and฀intellectuals. English-speaking฀ anthropologists฀ dominated฀ anthropology฀ during฀ the฀colonial฀period,฀partly,฀I฀think,฀because฀of฀their฀philosophical฀doctrine฀of฀empiricism,฀which฀fostered฀greater฀respect฀for฀local฀culture฀than฀ did฀ the฀ French฀ colonial฀ “mission฀ civilisatrice.”฀ Whatever฀ the฀ cause,฀ English-speaking฀anthropologists฀served฀colonial฀administrators฀whose฀ directive฀was฀to฀rule฀through฀local฀personnel,฀and฀this,฀in฀the฀jargon฀ of฀postmodernism,฀produced฀multivocality฀and฀gave฀anthropologists฀ the฀opportunity฀to฀assert฀themselves฀more฀creatively.฀The฀emergence฀ of฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ discipline฀ in฀ the฀ university฀ system฀ in฀ Great฀ Britain฀during฀the฀years฀between฀the฀two฀world฀wars฀led,฀in฀1925,฀to฀ the฀creation฀of฀a฀state-sponsored฀research฀institute,฀the฀International฀ Institute฀of฀African฀Languages฀and฀Culture฀(IIALC).฀This฀institute฀(later฀ known฀as฀the฀International฀African฀Institute,฀or฀IAI)฀encouraged฀the฀ collection฀ of฀ massive฀ quantities฀ of฀ ethnographic฀ data฀ on฀ Africa฀ and฀ further฀consolidated฀the฀discipline. The฀ institute฀ established฀ the฀ Journal฀ Africa฀ in฀ 1928฀ and,฀ in฀ 1938,฀ under฀Lord฀Hailey,฀published฀The฀African฀Survey.฀It฀inspired฀monographs฀ on฀ African฀ politics฀ (African฀ Political฀ Systems,฀ edited฀ by฀ Meyer฀ Fortes฀ and฀E.฀E.฀Evans-Pritchard฀[1940],฀and฀Tribes฀without฀Rulers,฀edited฀by฀ John฀Middleton฀and฀David฀Tait฀[1958]),฀cosmology฀and฀religion฀(African฀

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Worlds,฀edited฀by฀Daryll฀Forde฀[1954]),฀witchcraft฀(Witchcraft฀and฀Sorcery฀ in฀ East฀ Africa,฀ edited฀ by฀ John฀ Middleton฀ and฀ E.฀ H.฀ Winter฀ [1963]),฀ and฀kinship฀(African฀Systems฀of฀Kinships฀and฀Marriage,฀edited฀by฀Alfred฀ R.฀Radcliffe-Brown฀and฀Daryll฀Forde฀[1956]).฀Other฀English-speaking฀ anthropologists฀ of฀ the฀ period฀ included฀ E.฀ E.฀ Evans-Pritchard,฀ Victor฀ Turner,฀Audrey฀Richard,฀and฀Mary฀Douglas,฀all฀of฀whom฀contributed฀ to฀what฀Godfrey฀Lienhardt฀(1976)฀called฀the฀early฀theoretical฀capital฀ of฀the฀generation฀that฀came฀into฀academic฀seniority฀after฀the฀Second฀ World฀War.฀By฀the฀time฀John฀Beattie฀and฀John฀Middleton฀edited฀Spirit฀ Mediumship฀and฀Society฀in฀Africa฀(1969),฀social฀anthropology฀had฀captured฀ the฀imaginations฀of฀black฀Africans,฀who฀were฀turning฀to฀the฀discipline฀ for฀answers฀to฀questions฀about฀making฀development฀schemes฀successful฀ in฀ culturally฀ heterogeneous฀ societies.฀ In฀ the฀ 1930s,฀ Jomo฀ Kenyatta,฀ from฀Kenya,฀would฀study฀under฀Malinowksi;฀his฀Facing฀Mount฀Kenya฀ was฀published฀in฀1938.฀Kofi฀Busia,฀from฀Ghana฀(1962),฀and฀Cheik฀Anta฀ Diop,฀from฀Senegal฀(1974),฀who฀had฀emerged฀as฀defenders฀of฀the฀right฀ of฀Africans฀to฀be฀part฀of฀world฀history,฀were฀also฀deeply฀committed฀to฀ anthropology. The฀development฀of฀Africanist฀anthropology฀in฀France฀was฀largely฀ the฀ work฀ of฀ two฀ key฀ government-sponsored฀ institutes:฀ the฀ Institut฀ Français฀pour฀l’Afrique฀Noire฀(IFAN))฀and฀the฀Organisation฀de฀Recherche฀ Scientifique฀et฀Technique฀d’Outre฀Mer฀(ORSTOM).฀IFAN฀was฀established฀ principally฀to฀document,฀for฀comparative฀purposes,฀the฀customs฀and฀ traditions฀of฀African฀“ethnic฀nations.”฀ORSTOM,฀on฀the฀other฀hand,฀had฀ a฀broad฀mandate,฀allowing฀it฀to฀conduct฀more฀comprehensive฀studies฀ in฀all฀the฀French฀colonies,฀including฀those฀in฀Africa,฀by฀focusing฀on฀ social,฀human,฀mineral,฀health,฀and฀geological฀research.฀The฀creative฀ work฀of฀ORSTOM฀would,฀like฀that฀of฀its฀British฀counterpart,฀generate฀ massive฀amounts฀of฀ethnographic฀data. At฀the฀close฀of฀the฀colonial฀era,฀Africanist฀ethnologists฀such฀as฀Georges฀ Balandier฀(1966)฀and฀Jacques฀Lombard฀(1967)฀returned฀to฀the฀French฀ university฀system.฀Balandier,฀one฀of฀the฀leading฀French฀political฀anthropologists,฀would฀influence฀a฀whole฀generation฀of฀French฀anthropologists฀ but฀also฀drew฀inspiration฀from฀Great฀Britain.฀He฀trained฀a฀new฀group฀ of฀French฀anthropologists,฀including฀Claude฀Meillassoux฀(1968),฀Marc฀ Augé฀(1986),฀and฀Jean฀Copans฀(1990). In฀the฀1970s,฀under฀Meillassoux,฀Marxist฀anthropology฀would฀again฀ capture฀the฀imaginations฀of฀Africanists฀across฀the฀world.฀Anthropology฀ as฀a฀discipline฀was฀considered฀“colonial,”฀something฀that฀was฀used฀to฀ colonize฀the฀continent.฀Marxism,฀on฀the฀other฀hand—as฀an฀ideology,฀ not฀ just฀ as฀ a฀ theory฀ of฀ history—was฀ more฀ sympathetic฀ to฀ the฀ fight฀

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against฀capitalists฀and฀the฀imperial฀project฀of฀the฀West฀than฀was฀the฀ empiricist฀tradition฀of฀Great฀Britain.฀French฀anthropologists฀would฀leave฀ their฀anthropological฀ghetto฀as฀French-speaking฀scholars฀and฀explore฀ the฀rest฀of฀the฀continent.฀To฀their฀surprise,฀they฀found฀a฀totally฀different฀ intellectual฀and฀academic฀outlook฀among฀British฀and฀British-trained฀ anthropologists.฀They฀also฀confronted฀a฀huge฀language฀barrier฀between฀ French฀and฀British฀anthropologists. Ironically,฀despite฀their฀use฀of฀anthropologists฀in฀the฀colonial฀enterprise,฀officials฀at฀the฀British฀colonial฀office฀were฀profoundly฀suspicious฀ of฀anthropologists,฀especially฀those฀who฀came฀from฀the฀practical฀school฀ of฀anthropology฀headed฀by฀Bronislaw฀Malinowski.฀Some฀colonial฀administrators฀accused฀anthropologists฀of฀peddling฀“tribalism.”฀Nonetheless,฀ under฀ intense฀ pressure฀ from฀ nationalists,฀ Africanist฀ anthropologists฀ from฀ the฀ West฀ withdrew฀ from฀ studies฀ on฀ the฀ continent฀ during฀ the฀ 1960s.฀They฀correctly฀feared฀that฀the฀postcolonial฀African฀leaders฀would฀ endorse฀neither฀the฀old฀colonial฀policies฀of฀governance฀nor฀the฀scholars฀ who฀had฀supported฀those฀policies.

New฀Nation-States฀and฀the฀University฀System At฀independence,฀each฀new฀nation฀created฀its฀own฀institution฀of฀higher฀ learning฀with฀a฀curriculum฀based฀on฀that฀of฀the฀European฀universities.฀ State฀elites฀assumed฀that฀the฀transfer฀of฀scientific฀knowledge฀was฀crucial฀ for฀development,฀and฀each฀country฀urgently฀needed฀trained฀manpower,฀ especially฀in฀its฀civil฀service.฀For฀example,฀at฀independence฀one฀African฀ nation฀had฀about฀sixteen฀university฀graduates,฀of฀whom฀twelve฀were฀ priests฀and฀four฀were฀laymen.฀International฀donors฀understood฀this฀need฀ and฀supported฀its฀fulfillment,฀so฀that฀among฀the฀first฀objectives฀of฀the฀ new฀universities฀was฀to฀produce฀such฀manpower.฀Little฀attention฀was฀ paid฀to฀the฀study฀of฀African฀cultures฀in฀the฀new฀university฀curricula.฀ Universities฀recruited฀African฀faculty฀with฀overseas฀training฀to฀teach฀ alongside฀expatriates฀and฀gradually฀to฀replace฀them.฀Throughout฀the฀ 1960s฀ and฀ 1970s,฀ the฀ returning฀ graduates฀ were฀ guaranteed฀ salaries,฀ housing,฀and฀even฀transportation. The฀ applied฀ dimensions฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ would฀ suffer฀ a฀ setback,฀ however,฀ as฀ nationalist฀ movements฀ turned฀ to฀ modernization฀ theory฀ to฀transform฀Africa฀into฀what฀they฀hoped฀would฀be฀an฀economic฀power.฀ These฀nationalist฀movements฀continued฀to฀regard฀anthropology฀as฀a฀ tool฀of฀colonial฀subjugation฀and฀as฀a฀discipline฀of฀no฀relevance฀for฀the฀ new฀and฀modernizing฀Africa฀(Nkwi฀2000:฀21).฀African฀and฀Africanist฀ anthropologists฀found฀it฀difficult฀to฀practice฀their฀profession฀openly.฀At฀

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Makerere฀University฀in฀Kampala,฀for฀example,฀the฀British฀had฀established฀ the฀ Institute฀ of฀ Cultural฀ Anthropology฀ to฀ promote฀ ethnographic฀ research.฀This฀once฀flourishing฀institute฀disappeared฀into฀the฀sociology฀ department฀(Crossman฀and฀Devisch฀1999:฀117). Caught฀ between฀ a฀ desire฀ to฀ break฀ with฀ the฀ colonialist฀ past฀ and฀ a฀ desire฀to฀attain฀economic฀and฀social฀progress฀equivalent฀to฀that฀in฀the฀ former฀colonial฀powers,฀some฀Marxist-oriented฀African฀leaders฀plunged฀ into฀ an฀ ill-conceived฀ economic฀ development฀ model฀ called฀ “African฀ socialism,”฀ or฀ “communalism.”฀ The฀ model฀ was฀ an฀ odd฀ mixture฀ of฀ statist฀and฀classical฀development฀economics.฀Although฀many฀of฀these฀ leaders฀claimed฀African฀roots฀for฀their฀political฀ideology,฀few฀relied฀on฀ anthropology฀to฀provide฀the฀basis฀for฀such฀an฀ideology.฀Many฀spoke฀ of฀African฀culture฀without฀comprehending฀what฀that฀might฀mean฀in฀ practice.฀ Two฀ UNESCO฀ conferences฀ (one฀ in฀ Monrovia฀ in฀ 1979฀ and฀ another฀in฀Yaoundé฀in฀1984)฀called฀for฀the฀teaching฀of฀African฀languages฀ and฀ cultures,฀ but฀ this฀ simply฀ never฀ happened฀ in฀ most฀ countries.฀ Anthropology฀could฀have฀provided฀the฀material฀for฀such฀a฀curriculum,฀ but฀ the฀ discipline฀ was฀ not฀ taken฀ seriously,฀ carrying฀ the฀ stigma,฀ as฀ it฀ did,฀of฀its฀ties฀to฀the฀colonial฀past฀(Crossman฀and฀Devisch฀1999:฀117;฀ cf.฀Sawadogo฀1995). The฀first฀call฀for฀a฀university฀for฀West฀Africa฀came฀from฀three฀nineteenthcentury฀black฀intellectuals:฀Dr.฀James฀Africanus฀Beale฀Horton฀(1835–83),฀ Edward฀ Blyden฀ (1832–1912),฀ and฀ Rev.฀ James฀ Johnson฀ (1839–1917).฀ Blyden,฀for฀example,฀called฀for฀an฀indigenous฀university฀that฀would฀ “release฀Africa฀from฀the฀grip฀of฀the฀despotic฀mind฀and฀restore฀cultural฀ self-respect฀among฀Africans,”฀and฀Johnson฀called฀for฀“an฀institution฀ that฀would฀leave฀undisturbed฀our฀peculiarities”฀(Wandira฀1978:฀39–40;฀ cf.฀Odumosu฀1973). A฀century฀later,฀while฀opening฀the฀Institute฀of฀African฀Studies฀at฀the฀ University฀of฀Ghana–Legon,฀Dr.฀Kwame฀Nkrumah,฀then฀president฀of฀ Ghana,฀invited฀African฀scholars฀to฀study฀Africa฀in฀all฀of฀its฀complexities฀ and฀ diversity,฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ stimulate฀ respect฀ for฀ the฀ idea฀ of฀ African฀ unity.฀The฀study฀of฀African฀cultures฀and฀people฀was฀not฀to฀be฀limited฀ to฀ conventional฀ and฀ regional฀ boundaries.฀ Nkrumah฀ urged฀ that฀ all฀ investigations฀ “must฀ inevitably฀ lead฀ towards฀ the฀ exploration฀ of฀ the฀ connections฀ between฀ musical฀ forms,฀ the฀ dances,฀ the฀ literature,฀ the฀ plastic฀arts,฀the฀philosophical฀and฀religious฀beliefs,฀the฀systems฀of฀government,฀the฀patterns฀of฀trade฀and฀economic฀organization฀that฀have฀been฀ developed฀here฀in฀Ghana฀and฀in฀the฀cultures฀of฀other฀African฀peoples฀ and฀other฀regions฀of฀Africa”฀(Hays฀1958:฀10;฀cf.฀Hagan฀1989).฀In฀his฀book฀ Africa฀Must฀Unite฀(Nkrumah฀1963),฀culture฀is฀also฀a฀dominant฀theme.฀

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Anthropological฀studies฀would฀be฀part฀of฀the฀essential฀programs฀of฀the฀ Institute฀of฀African฀Studies. As฀it฀turned฀out,฀if฀African฀socialism฀did฀not฀work,฀then฀neither฀did฀ the฀main฀opposing฀strategy฀for฀development.฀With฀profound฀respect฀ for฀the฀scientific฀principles฀behind฀the฀hugely฀successful฀Marshall฀Plan฀ in฀postwar฀Europe,฀African฀planners฀swallowed฀development฀theories฀ that฀targeted฀investment฀in฀industrial฀development฀and฀human฀capital.฀ Most฀African฀leaders฀in฀the฀early฀decades฀after฀independence฀followed฀ a฀pattern฀of฀industry-first฀investment฀and฀the฀development฀of฀so-called฀ urban฀growth฀poles฀(see฀Eicher฀and฀Staatz฀1984).฀All฀initiatives฀were฀ mixed฀with฀overbearing฀state฀involvement฀in฀the฀management฀of฀the฀ economy. The฀policies฀adopted฀in฀the฀1960s฀and฀1970s฀permitted฀African฀state฀ governments฀ to฀ intervene฀ at฀ all฀ levels,฀ controlling฀ market฀ forces฀ by฀ providing฀credit฀and฀setting฀prices฀for฀commodities.฀The฀construction฀of฀ the฀postcolonial฀state฀saw฀the฀disarticulation฀of฀economic,฀cultural,฀and฀ ethnic฀differences฀and฀the฀endorsement฀of฀arbitrary฀colonial฀borders.฀ Economic฀failure฀and฀criticism฀of฀state฀policies฀would฀lead฀to฀the฀Structural฀ Adjustment฀Programs฀(SAPs)฀of฀the฀1980s.฀Those฀programs฀demanded฀ the฀separation฀of฀the฀state฀from฀the฀market฀economy,฀reducing฀public฀ expenditure฀and฀empowering฀the฀private฀sector฀(Coussy฀1991:123–39).฀ These฀adjustments฀were฀the฀price฀of฀continued฀international฀loans฀and฀ other฀supports,฀but฀they฀were฀detrimental฀to฀the฀masses,฀who฀would฀ become฀poorer฀and฀poorer.฀During฀the฀1990s,฀the฀new฀buzzword฀was฀ “poverty฀alleviation”—referring฀to฀the฀poverty฀that฀had฀been฀created฀ during฀ the฀ 1980s฀ by฀ the฀ poorly฀ executed฀ SAPs฀ of฀ the฀ international฀ financial฀institutions. Vitriolic฀attacks฀on฀the฀discipline฀by฀some฀African฀intellectuals฀(Seri฀ 1989)฀retarded฀its฀progress฀as฀the฀“rejectionist฀syndrome”฀drove฀some฀ of฀our฀social฀science฀colleagues฀to฀extremes.฀In฀1991,฀Ife฀Amadiume,฀ an฀ African฀ sociologist,฀ recommended฀ abolishing฀ anthropology฀ and฀ turning฀it฀into฀“African฀social฀history฀and฀sociology฀of฀history”฀(Mafeje฀ 1997:฀22).฀In฀the฀1970s,฀such฀criticism฀led฀to฀the฀emergence฀of฀three฀ trends.฀First,฀anthropology฀took฀cover฀within฀African฀Studies฀programs.฀ Centers฀ of฀ African฀ Studies฀ emerged฀ in฀ many฀ American฀ universities,฀ and฀analogous฀Institutes฀of฀African฀Studies฀flourished฀in฀most฀Anglophone฀African฀universities.฀Within฀those฀institutes,฀anthropology฀per฀ se฀was฀taught฀and฀practiced.฀Second,฀the฀role฀of฀Marxist฀intellectuals฀in฀ fighting฀imperialism฀and฀colonialism฀led฀to฀the฀emergence฀of฀Marxist฀ anthropology.฀ Marxism,฀ as฀ a฀ philosophy,฀ served฀ as฀ an฀ intellectual฀ cover฀for฀many฀European฀anthropologists฀desiring฀to฀continue฀doing฀

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anthropology฀in฀Africa฀without฀being฀accused฀by฀nationalist฀movements฀ of฀being฀part฀of฀the฀colonial฀apparatus.฀Being฀a฀Marxist฀anthropologist฀ was฀ politically฀ correct฀ at฀ the฀ time.฀ Third,฀ anthropology฀ was฀ labeled฀ one฀of฀the฀branches฀of฀sociology฀and฀was฀taught฀within฀the฀nascent฀ departments฀of฀sociology฀in฀African฀universities. In฀ South฀ Africa,฀ anthropology฀ continued฀ to฀ function฀ as฀ a฀ formal฀ discipline฀ at฀ the฀ Universities฀ of฀ Cape฀ Town฀ and฀ Witswatersrand,฀ as฀ well฀as฀at฀Rhodes฀and฀Natal฀Universities.฀These฀institutions,฀however,฀ provided฀little฀support฀to฀departments฀of฀anthropology฀at฀the฀so-called฀ bush-colleges฀(Transkei,฀Unitra,฀Durban-Westville,฀Venda,฀the฀North,฀ and฀ so฀ on;฀ see฀ Svawda฀ 1998).฀ These฀ colleges฀ had฀ been฀ established฀ under฀the฀apartheid฀system฀to฀provide฀education฀to฀Blacks฀and฀the฀socalled฀Colored.฀The฀voelkerkunde฀tradition,฀the฀ideological฀ingredient฀ of฀the฀apartheid฀system,฀continued฀at฀the฀Universities฀of฀Pretoria,฀Port฀ Elisabeth,฀Stellenboesch,฀and฀Bloemfontein.฀In฀1996,฀representatives฀ of฀ the฀ voelkerkunde฀ tradition฀ attempted฀ to฀ legitimate฀ their฀ group฀ by฀ joining฀the฀PAAA฀during฀the฀association’s฀seventh฀annual฀conference฀in฀ Pretoria.฀They฀were฀not฀admitted,฀because฀of฀the฀tradition’s฀association฀ with฀past฀racism.฀In฀2000,฀however,฀the฀two฀traditions฀merged฀(Bogopa฀ 2001:2). Despite฀ the฀ stigma฀ of฀ Africa’s฀ colonialist฀ past,฀ many฀ Africanists฀ from฀Western฀universities฀continued฀to฀study฀anthropology฀in฀Africa฀ after฀ independence.฀ The฀ Rhodes฀ Livingstone฀ Institute฀ continued฀ to฀ enhance฀the฀anthropology฀of฀Africa,฀and฀the฀Manchester฀school,฀with฀ Africanists฀ such฀ as฀ Clyde฀ Mitchell฀ (1969),฀ continued฀ to฀ publish฀ on฀ African฀ anthropological฀ issues.฀ Other฀ Africanists,฀ such฀ as฀ Elisabeth฀ Colson฀ (1971),฀ Mary฀ Douglas฀ (1963),฀ Audrey฀ Richard฀ (1969),฀ and฀ Ronald฀Cohen฀(1971),฀worked฀intensively฀in฀Africa฀for฀decades,฀even฀ after฀independence.฀Kofi฀Busia,฀a฀Ghanaian฀who฀studied฀anthropology฀ and฀ established฀ the฀ Department฀ of฀ Sociology฀ at฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Ghana-Legon,฀would฀even฀head฀the฀Department฀of฀Anthropology฀at฀ Leiden฀ University฀ in฀ the฀ Netherlands.฀ Jomo฀ Kenyatta,฀ a฀ student฀ of฀ Malinowski’s,฀would฀use฀his฀anthropological฀skills฀to฀construct฀the฀Mau฀ Mau฀movement฀to฀claim฀power฀in฀Kenya.฀Leading฀African฀anthropologists฀ such฀as฀Adam฀Kuper฀(1987),฀Brian฀du฀Toit฀(1974),฀Archie฀Mafeje,฀and฀ Maxwell฀Owusu฀(1970)฀left฀their฀countries฀in฀search฀of฀more฀conducive฀ environments฀for฀serious฀anthropological฀work.฀Others,฀such฀as฀Kwesi฀ Prah฀(1993),฀Godwin฀Nukunya฀(1969),฀Harris฀Memel-Fotê฀(1980),฀and฀ Théophile฀Obenga฀(1985),฀remained฀in฀Africa฀to฀do฀research฀and฀teach฀ anthropology. In฀Francophone฀Africa,฀as฀ORSTOM’s฀influence฀began฀to฀diminish฀ in฀the฀1970s,฀institutes฀of฀human฀sciences฀were฀established฀outside฀of฀

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the฀ university฀ system.฀ Within฀ the฀ universities,฀ courses฀ on฀ marriage,฀ kinship,฀ African฀ political฀ and฀ social฀ institutions,฀ and฀ other฀ subjects฀ with฀anthropological฀content฀were฀taught฀in฀departments฀of฀sociology;฀ those฀who฀taught฀these฀courses฀preferred฀to฀be฀called฀sociologists.฀These฀ developments฀coincided฀with฀the฀establishment฀of฀professional฀African฀ studies฀associations฀in฀the฀United฀States฀and฀Canada฀and฀of฀journals฀ such฀as฀the฀Journal฀of฀African฀Studies฀in฀1974.฀French฀anthropological฀ research฀continued฀in฀non-university฀settings,฀not฀only฀in฀ORSTOM฀ but฀also฀in฀the฀Centre฀National฀de฀la฀Recherche฀Scientifique฀(CNRS),฀ the฀Musée฀de฀l’Homme,฀and฀the฀École฀Pratique฀des฀Hautes฀Études.฀This฀ continued฀even฀after฀independence,฀perpetuating฀the฀colonial฀legacy฀ of฀these฀institutions฀(see฀Copans฀1990:฀32–36).฀During฀the฀1960s฀and฀ 1970s,฀however,฀the฀University฀of฀Paris฀X–Nanterre฀was฀the฀only฀one฀ out฀of฀seventy-six฀French฀institutions฀that฀offered฀anthropology฀at฀the฀ undergraduate฀level฀(Copans฀1990:฀66–70). These฀timid฀efforts฀within฀the฀French฀university฀system฀gained฀greater฀ impetus฀under฀Georges฀Balandier฀and฀Pierre฀Alexandre.฀They฀established฀ the฀ Center฀ for฀ International฀ Relations฀ (later฀ known฀ as฀ the฀ Centre฀ d’Études฀ et฀ de฀ Recherches฀ Internationales,฀ or฀ the฀ Center฀ for฀ Studies฀ and฀International฀Research)฀with฀a฀specific฀focus฀on฀Africa,฀and฀Marcel฀ Merle฀and฀Albert฀Mabileau฀set฀up฀the฀Centre฀for฀the฀Study฀of฀Black฀Africa฀ (Centre฀ d’Études฀ d’Afrique฀ Noire)฀ in฀ Bordeaux.฀ After฀ independence,฀ ORSTOM฀ forged฀ a฀ new฀ relationship฀ with฀ new฀ institutes฀ of฀ human฀ sciences฀throughout฀the฀former฀colonies,฀and฀it฀continued฀to฀work฀under฀ a฀new฀umbrella฀called฀the฀Institut฀de฀Recherche฀pour฀le฀Développement.฀ In฀fact,฀in฀French-speaking฀Africa฀ORSTOM฀remained,฀until฀the฀1980s,฀ the฀ only฀ credible฀ institution฀ with฀ the฀ resources฀ to฀ conduct฀ serious฀ anthropological฀work฀(including฀archaeology,฀linguistics,฀ethnology,฀and฀ social฀anthropology).฀Even฀in฀countries฀such฀as฀Cameroon,฀where฀the฀ Social฀Sciences฀Institute฀in฀the฀Ministry฀of฀Scientific฀Research฀collapsed฀ during฀ the฀ Structural฀ Adjustment฀ Programs,฀ ORSTOM฀ continued฀ its฀ research฀work,฀though฀it฀did฀so฀without฀involving฀senior฀local฀scholars.฀ Despite฀the฀slowdown฀of฀knowledge฀production฀and฀the฀reduction฀in฀ scholarship,฀the฀anthropology฀of฀Africa฀continued฀to฀contribute฀to฀the฀ development฀of฀comparative฀ethnological฀theory฀and฀to฀the฀academic฀ debates฀of฀the฀1960s฀and฀1970s.

Policy฀Shifts฀and฀Years฀of฀Awakening By฀ the฀ end฀ of฀ the฀ 1970s,฀ mounting฀ evidence฀ showed฀ stagnation฀ or฀ decline฀in฀per฀capita฀economic฀growth฀rates฀in฀Africa.฀The฀failure฀of฀ modernization฀theory฀to฀transform฀nascent฀modern฀African฀economies฀

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led฀ development฀ agencies฀ to฀ rethink฀ their฀ policies.฀ The฀ World฀ Bank฀ committed฀major฀resources฀to฀developing฀the฀“poorest฀of฀the฀poor,”฀ which฀was฀basically฀an฀open฀admission฀that฀macro-level฀policies฀had฀ failed฀to฀achieve฀their฀objectives.฀As฀the฀micro-level฀approach฀became฀a฀ real฀alternative,฀some฀argued฀for฀the฀need฀for฀input฀by฀anthropologists.฀ This฀was฀based฀on฀the฀theory฀that฀these฀fieldworking฀scholars฀were฀in฀ the฀best฀position฀to฀understand฀how,฀for฀example,฀food฀markets฀worked฀ in฀Africa,฀as฀well฀as฀who฀the฀participants฀were. In฀ the฀ book฀ Development฀ from฀ Below,฀ David฀ Pitt฀ (1976)฀ and฀ others฀ showed,฀ through฀ a฀ series฀ of฀ case฀ studies,฀ how฀ development฀ projects฀ failed,฀specifically฀when฀the฀people฀whom฀the฀projects฀were฀intended฀ to฀help฀participated฀in฀neither฀the฀design฀nor฀the฀implementation฀of฀ those฀projects.฀Anthropologists฀with฀knowledge฀of฀local฀cultures฀would฀ have฀ argued฀ for฀ exactly฀ that฀ kind฀ of฀ input—although฀ it฀ might฀ not฀ have฀been฀enough฀to฀stave฀off฀failure.฀By฀the฀1980s,฀the฀demand฀for฀ anthropological฀ input฀ had฀ strengthened.฀ This฀ had฀ an฀ effect฀ on฀ the฀ small฀community฀of฀African฀anthropologists฀who฀were฀still฀operating฀ underground฀in฀departments฀of฀sociology.฀These฀scholars฀consulted฀with฀ nongovernmental฀ organizations฀ and฀ other฀ bilateral฀ and฀ multilateral฀ agencies฀regarding฀the฀design฀of฀development฀projects,฀but฀they฀had฀ little฀involvement฀in฀implementation. Another฀major฀policy฀shift฀involved฀the฀training฀of฀applied฀scientists฀ for฀rural฀development.฀If฀the฀emphasis฀at฀independence฀was฀on฀producing฀ a฀critical฀mass฀of฀people฀to฀run฀the฀postcolonial฀administration,฀by฀the฀ early฀1980s฀the฀focus฀had฀shifted฀to฀improving฀agricultural฀production฀ and฀the฀living฀standards฀of฀the฀rural฀poor.฀This฀required฀training฀Africans฀ in฀agronomy,฀animal฀science,฀veterinary฀medicine,฀soil฀science,฀rural฀ economics,฀ rural฀ sociology,฀ and฀ the฀ emerging฀ field฀ of฀ development฀ anthropology.฀The฀land฀grant฀university฀system฀had฀worked฀agricultural฀ miracles฀in฀the฀United฀States,฀and฀the฀US฀government฀launched฀a฀massive฀ program฀to฀help฀build฀and฀staff฀entire฀agricultural฀universities฀in฀Africa,฀ based฀on฀the฀land฀grant฀model.฀Science฀and฀extension฀services฀would฀ be฀the฀keys฀to฀a฀new฀Green฀Revolution.฀The฀Agricultural฀University฀of฀ Dschang฀in฀Cameroon฀was฀one฀of฀the฀beneficiaries฀of฀such฀a฀policy.฀ However,฀despite฀the฀training฀of฀more฀than฀forty฀faculty฀members,฀the฀ country-wide฀agricultural฀extension฀model฀envisioned฀in฀the฀design฀of฀ the฀university฀was฀never฀materialized. Another฀major฀impetus฀for฀engagement฀by฀anthropologists฀in฀development฀programs฀was฀the฀Alma฀Ata฀(Kazakhstan)฀conference฀of฀1978฀on฀ health฀care.฀The฀Declaration฀of฀Alma฀Ata฀called฀for฀a฀new฀emphasis฀on฀ primary฀health฀care฀and฀on฀the฀participation฀of฀locals฀in฀the฀design฀

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and฀management฀of฀health฀systems.฀This฀shift฀from฀hospital-centered฀ to฀people-centered฀health฀care฀gave฀medical฀anthropologists฀a฀window฀ of฀opportunity.฀The฀Bamako฀Initiative—Africa’s฀interpretation฀of฀the฀ Alma-Ata฀declaration—called฀for฀“health฀for฀all฀in฀the฀year฀2000,”฀and฀ this฀further฀opened฀opportunities฀for฀medical฀anthropologists.1 Another฀major฀policy฀shift฀took฀place฀at฀the฀joint฀conference฀of฀the฀ Economic฀Commission฀for฀Africa฀(ECA/UN)฀and฀the฀Organization฀of฀ African฀Unity฀(OAU)฀held฀in฀1984฀in฀Arusha,฀Tanzania.฀This฀conference฀ brought฀experts฀together฀to฀address฀Africa’s฀failure฀to฀produce฀economic฀ and฀social฀prosperity฀after฀two฀decades฀of฀massive฀foreign฀assistance.฀In฀ the฀final฀document,฀ECA฀and฀OAU฀acknowledged฀that฀the฀beneficiaries฀ of฀development฀had฀been฀marginalized฀in฀the฀process.฀The฀document฀ failed฀to฀acknowledge฀that฀the฀social฀sciences฀had฀also฀been฀left฀out฀of฀ the฀process.฀Michael฀Cernea฀(1982)฀would฀also฀indicate฀the฀importance฀ of฀culture฀and฀a฀people-centered฀approach฀in฀his฀writings.฀Of฀course,฀the฀ failure฀to฀achieve฀prosperity฀in฀Africa฀was฀not฀the฀result฀solely฀of฀leaving฀ social฀science฀out฀of฀development;฀corruption฀and฀ethnic฀violence฀both฀ had฀significant฀roles฀to฀play.

The฀Cameroon฀Case Through฀its฀slow฀and฀deliberate฀infiltration฀of฀policy฀making,฀anthropology฀has฀come฀to฀be฀recognized฀in฀the฀intellectual฀circles฀of฀my฀own฀ country,฀Cameroon.฀Anthropologists฀in฀Cameroon฀have฀been฀engaged฀ with฀the฀state฀in฀several฀capacities.฀First,฀as฀employees฀of฀the฀state— civil฀servants—university฀professors฀have฀had฀a฀duty฀to฀teach฀the฀subjects฀ they฀ are฀ assigned.฀ Second,฀ some฀ social฀ scientists฀ have฀ become฀ part฀of฀the฀state’s฀policy-making฀apparatus฀as฀members฀of฀government฀ ministries,฀deans฀of฀faculties,฀or฀even฀chancellors฀or฀vice฀chancellors฀ of฀universities. Cameroon฀ became฀ a฀ German฀ protectorate฀ in฀ 1884.฀ For฀ thirty-two฀ years,฀ until฀ 1916,฀ colonial฀ military฀ forces฀ conducted฀ pacification฀ operations฀ there฀ to฀ quell฀ uprisings฀ by฀ ethnic฀ groups฀ that฀ refused฀ to฀ recognize฀German฀sovereignty.฀During฀this฀time,฀scant฀ethnographic฀ work฀was฀conducted฀(Nkwi฀1989).฀When฀the฀combined฀forces฀of฀British฀ and฀French฀troops฀defeated฀the฀Germans฀in฀1915,฀Cameroon฀was฀split฀ into฀two฀parts฀and฀administered฀under฀the฀League฀of฀Nations.฀France฀ administered฀almost฀two-thirds฀of฀the฀original฀German฀territory,฀while฀ Britain฀took฀over฀the฀rest฀of฀it,฀bordering฀on฀Nigeria,฀and฀administered฀ it฀from฀Lagos.฀Researchers฀affiliated฀with฀ORSTOM฀and฀CNRS฀worked฀ in฀ the฀ French-speaking฀ part฀ of฀ Cameroon,฀ collecting฀ and฀ analyzing฀

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ethnographic฀data.฀The฀creation฀of฀Études฀Camérounaise฀by฀these฀French฀ institutions฀offered฀all฀scholars฀an฀opportunity฀to฀publish฀their฀findings฀ in฀ a฀ unique฀ journal.฀ Some฀ of฀ the฀ well-known฀ anthropologists฀ who฀ worked฀ in฀ Cameroon฀ during฀ this฀ period฀ were฀ Claude฀ Tardits฀ (1960)฀ and฀Phillipe฀Laburthe-Tolra฀(1985),฀from฀France,฀and฀Peter฀Geschiere฀ (1982,฀1983),฀from฀the฀University฀of฀Leiden. Between฀1916฀and฀1960,฀while฀ORSTOM฀and฀CNRS฀conducted฀anthropological฀surveys฀in฀French฀Cameroon,฀anthropologists฀from฀Oxford฀ and฀ University฀ College฀ London฀ focused฀ on฀ collecting฀ ethnographic฀ material฀to฀give฀the฀British฀colonial฀administration฀a฀better฀picture฀of฀ ethnic฀diversity฀in฀the฀so-called฀Southern฀Cameroons.฀Phyllis฀Kaberry,฀ from฀London฀(1952),฀and฀Elisabeth฀M.฀Chilver฀(1966,฀1974)฀and฀Edwin฀ Ardener,฀from฀Oxford,฀would฀spend฀their฀young฀adulthoods฀building฀the฀ basis฀of฀future฀anthropological฀work฀in฀English฀Cameroon.฀A฀younger฀ generation฀of฀anthropologists,฀including฀me,฀would฀be฀inspired฀by฀the฀ massive฀ quantity฀ of฀ ethnographic฀ data฀ accumulated฀ and฀ sometimes฀ published฀in฀the฀journal฀Nigerian฀Fields.฀This฀generation฀included฀Philip฀ Burnham฀(1996),฀Michael฀Rowlands,฀Jean฀Pierre฀Warnier฀(1993),฀and฀ Richard฀Fardon฀(1990). In฀ 1973฀ the฀ government฀ of฀ independent฀ Cameroon฀ decided฀ to฀ reorganize฀the฀research,฀which฀had฀remained฀largely฀in฀the฀hands฀of฀ French฀scholars.฀Of฀the฀seven฀institutes฀created,฀one฀was฀reserved฀for฀ the฀ social฀ and฀ human฀ sciences.฀ Within฀ this฀ institute฀ a฀ department฀ of฀ anthropology฀ was฀ established,฀ and฀ the฀ first฀ head฀ of฀ the฀ institute฀ was฀an฀anthropologist.฀The฀Institute฀of฀Human฀Sciences฀remained฀in฀ existence฀until฀1993,฀when฀the฀government฀shut฀it฀down฀and฀moved฀ the฀researchers฀to฀various฀ministries.฀The฀reasons฀for฀its฀closure฀were฀ largely฀political.฀With฀the฀push฀for฀democracy฀of฀the฀1990s,฀as฀well฀as฀ the฀ political฀ engagement฀ of฀ many฀ of฀ the฀ institute’s฀ researchers,฀ the฀ government฀came฀under฀criticism฀for฀its฀mismanagement฀and฀for฀the฀ country’s฀growing฀economic฀crisis.฀At฀least฀ten฀anthropologists฀accepted฀ transfers฀to฀government฀departments,฀whereas฀others฀refused฀to฀accede฀ to฀government฀pressure฀and฀instead฀joined฀various฀opposition฀parties. Earlier,฀in฀1962,฀the฀Federal฀University฀of฀Cameroon฀had฀been฀established.฀Within฀its฀Faculty฀of฀Social฀and฀Human฀Sciences฀was฀a฀department฀ of฀ sociology,฀ headed฀ by฀ a฀ French฀ anthropologist.฀ In฀ this฀ way,฀ anthropological฀research฀and฀teaching฀continued฀at฀the฀university฀for฀ years,฀although฀the฀courses฀were฀referred฀to฀as฀sociology.฀It฀must฀be฀said฀ that฀the฀emerging฀state฀of฀Cameroon฀was฀not฀hostile฀to฀anthropology,฀ for฀it฀continued฀to฀invite฀and฀deliver฀research฀clearance฀to฀researchers฀ from฀Europe,฀the฀United฀States,฀and฀Asia฀(especially฀Japan).

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I฀ joined฀ the฀ Department฀ of฀ Sociology฀ in฀ 1976.฀ Because฀ I฀ was฀ the฀ first฀faculty฀member฀from฀the฀English-speaking฀part฀of฀Cameroon,฀my฀ first฀assignment,฀besides฀teaching฀basic฀courses฀in฀anthropology,฀was฀ to฀assist฀and฀counsel฀English-speaking฀students.฀Two฀other฀colleagues,฀ who฀were฀trained฀in฀general฀ethnology฀in฀France,฀taught฀courses฀in฀the฀ department฀as฀well฀as฀in฀the฀Faculty฀of฀Law฀and฀Economics.2฀While฀I฀ identified฀myself฀with฀anthropology,฀they฀continued฀to฀call฀themselves฀ sociologists. Then฀came฀the฀crisis฀of฀1978,฀when฀internal฀reforms฀eliminated฀disciplines฀that฀were฀presumed฀to฀produce฀social฀critics฀and฀the฀unemployed.฀ The฀ university฀ administration฀ convened฀ a฀ meeting฀ of฀ the฀ heads฀of฀departments฀within฀the฀Faculty฀of฀Arts฀and฀Social฀Sciences.฀ As฀acting฀head฀of฀the฀department,฀I฀attended฀the฀meeting,฀chaired฀by฀ the฀chancellor฀and฀vice-chancellor.฀The฀dean฀of฀the฀faculty,฀a฀historian,฀ presented฀a฀report฀on฀reforms฀in฀the฀faculty฀that฀implied฀that฀sociology฀ and฀anthropology฀would฀be฀phased฀out฀of฀the฀university฀curriculum.฀ After฀a฀series฀of฀meetings฀involving฀the฀departmental฀staff,฀university฀ authorities,฀and฀the฀government,฀the฀minister฀of฀education฀called฀off฀ the฀ reforms.฀ Strict฀ instructions฀ were฀ given฀ to฀ the฀ dean฀ to฀ maintain฀ sociology฀and฀anthropology฀in฀the฀curriculum,฀but฀the฀reforms฀were฀ put฀in฀place฀nonetheless.฀Sociology฀and฀anthropology฀would฀be฀taught฀ as฀part฀of฀philosophy,฀but฀no฀BA฀degrees฀would฀be฀awarded. When฀the฀first฀continent-wide฀conference฀of฀African฀anthropologists฀ was฀held฀in฀1989,฀the฀ministry฀supported฀it฀and฀provided฀resources.฀To฀ highlight฀the฀importance฀of฀anthropology฀as฀a฀teaching฀subject,฀the฀ minister฀of฀higher฀education฀asked฀the฀chancellor฀of฀the฀University฀of฀ Yaoundé฀to฀open฀the฀conference฀in฀the฀name฀of฀the฀Cameroon฀government.฀ In฀ welcoming฀ the฀ thirty-five฀ African฀ anthropologists฀ from฀ twenty-one฀ universities,฀ the฀ chancellor฀ called฀ on฀ anthropologists฀ to฀ take฀their฀rightful฀place฀in฀the฀development฀arena฀and฀to฀show฀what฀ the฀“discipline฀can฀do฀to฀solve฀some฀of฀the฀problems฀Africa฀is฀facing.”฀ From฀ 1993฀ on฀ we฀ rebuilt฀ the฀ discipline,฀ designing฀ courses฀ for฀ the฀ bachelor’s,฀master’s,฀and฀PhD฀degrees฀in฀anthropology.฀Prior฀to฀this,฀ the฀bachelor’s฀degree฀had฀not฀been฀offered฀in฀anthropology.฀Just฀eight฀ students฀declared฀anthropology฀as฀their฀major฀in฀the฀1993–94฀academic฀ year,฀but฀the฀number฀grew฀to฀over฀one฀hundred฀only฀a฀decade฀later.฀ In฀ the฀ 2002–3฀ academic฀ year,฀ there฀ were฀ 525฀ students฀ majoring฀ in฀ anthropology,฀not฀to฀mention฀the฀same฀number฀of฀students฀taking฀it฀ as฀their฀minor. During฀this฀period฀I฀witnessed฀the฀increased฀involvement฀of฀social฀ scientists฀in฀health,฀agriculture,฀animal,฀environmental,฀and฀population฀

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research฀programs฀funded฀by฀the฀government.฀There฀were฀several฀reasons฀ for฀ this.฀ First,฀ the฀ proliferation฀ of฀ development฀ programs฀ increased฀ the฀demand฀for฀social฀science฀input฀in฀general฀and฀for฀anthropology฀ in฀ particular.฀ Second,฀ the฀ university฀ reforms฀ that฀ took฀ place฀ in฀ the฀ 1980s฀ across฀ Africa฀ offered฀ an฀ opportunity฀ for฀ the฀ enhancement฀ of฀ sociology฀and฀anthropology฀teaching฀programs.฀For฀example,฀in฀1985฀ the฀University฀of฀Nairobi฀established฀a฀full฀department฀of฀anthropology฀ within฀the฀Institute฀of฀African฀studies.฀The฀University฀of฀Yaoundé฀started฀ a฀full฀degree฀program฀in฀anthropology฀in฀1993,฀giving฀students฀access฀ to฀both฀undergraduate฀and฀graduate฀degrees฀in฀anthropology. Philip฀Kilbride฀(1994:฀10)฀noted฀that฀Kenyan฀anthropologists฀were฀ “struggling฀to฀resurrect฀anthropology฀from฀the฀ash฀heap฀of฀its฀colonial฀ associations฀by฀advocating฀anthropology฀in฀diverse฀public฀and฀private฀ forums.”฀By฀1994,฀he฀said,฀Kenyan฀anthropology฀was฀flourishing฀“at฀ universities฀ and฀ institutes฀ with฀ research฀ on฀ such฀ issues฀ as฀ overpopulation,฀polygyny,฀the฀status฀of฀women,฀AIDS฀and฀sexuality,฀tourism฀ and฀children’s฀health.”฀Anthropology฀had฀to฀rediscover฀itself฀both฀as฀ an฀ academic฀ discipline฀ and฀ as฀ a฀ discipline฀ that฀ could฀ help฀ to฀ solve฀ problems.฀Anthropologists฀had฀to฀show฀that฀they฀were฀not฀peddlers฀ of฀ tribalism฀ but฀ that฀ they฀ sought฀ to฀ expand฀ the฀ horizons฀ of฀ human฀ knowledge฀and฀to฀adapt฀to฀new฀areas฀and฀the฀challenges฀of฀development฀ (Monteiro฀2002:฀8). At฀the฀University฀of฀Yaoundé,฀anthropology฀and฀sociology฀remained—฀ for฀historical฀reasons—in฀one฀department,฀but฀they฀awarded฀separate฀ degrees฀ at฀ both฀ the฀ undergraduate฀ and฀ graduate฀ levels.฀ In฀ 1993–94,฀ however,฀with฀increased฀resources฀and฀the฀desire฀to฀evolve฀independently,฀ sociology฀and฀anthropology฀went฀their฀separate฀ways.฀Anthropology฀ expanded฀its฀teaching฀and฀research฀and฀attracted฀an฀increasing฀number฀ of฀students.฀The฀increased฀demand฀for฀consulting฀work฀gave฀anthropologists฀visibility.฀This฀in฀turn฀pressured฀them฀to฀assert฀their฀identity฀ and฀to฀highlight฀the฀dual฀academic฀and฀applied฀approaches฀of฀their฀ discipline.฀Many฀of฀us฀saw฀application฀as฀the฀best฀option฀for฀the฀discipline฀ to฀reclaim฀its฀lost฀glory.฀Given฀the฀strong฀market฀for฀professionals฀in฀ both฀ national฀ and฀ international฀ development฀ work,฀ I฀ argued฀ that฀ anthropology฀was฀a฀social฀science฀discipline฀ripe฀for฀professionalization.฀ Many฀of฀us฀in฀academia฀who฀were฀already฀active฀in฀consulting฀knew฀ exactly฀ what฀ was฀ necessary.฀ Targeting฀ critical฀ areas฀ such฀ as฀ general฀ health,฀ reproductive฀ health,฀ population฀ growth,฀ the฀ environment,฀ and฀agricultural฀development฀led฀to฀the฀design฀of฀courses฀in฀medical฀ anthropology,฀development฀anthropology,฀and฀environmental฀impact฀ assessment.฀Today,฀the฀University฀of฀Yaoundé–I฀has฀one฀of฀the฀most฀

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active฀ and฀ dynamic฀ departments฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ Central฀ Africa,฀ attracting฀students฀from฀the฀entire฀region.฀This฀department฀played฀a฀vital฀ role฀in฀the฀creation฀of฀the฀Pan฀African฀Anthropological฀Association.

The฀PAAA The฀formation฀of฀the฀PAAA฀was฀one฀of฀a฀series฀of฀events฀in฀the฀late฀1980s฀ and฀early฀1990s฀that฀helped฀integrate฀anthropology฀into฀the฀discourse฀ of฀development฀in฀Africa.฀The฀first฀such฀event฀was฀the฀establishment฀ of฀ CASA,฀ the฀ Council฀ on฀ Sociology฀ and฀ Anthropology฀ in฀ Africa,฀ by฀ CODESRIA,฀the฀Council฀for฀the฀Development฀of฀Economic฀and฀Social฀ Research฀in฀Africa,฀in฀1987.฀UNESCO’s฀Regional฀Bureau฀for฀Social฀Sciences฀ in฀Dakar,฀known฀by฀its฀French฀acronym,฀BREDA,฀endorsed฀the฀initiative฀ and฀provided฀initial฀resources฀to฀establish฀the฀association.฀In฀1988฀CASA฀ held฀ its฀ first฀ conference฀ in฀ Abidjan,฀ bringing฀ senior฀ sociologists฀ and฀ anthropologists฀from฀throughout฀Africa฀together฀for฀the฀first฀time.฀The฀ government฀ of฀ Ivory฀ Coast,฀ under฀ then฀ president฀ Felix฀ Houphouët฀ Boigny,฀ provided฀ substantial฀ financial฀ support฀ for฀ the฀ consolidation฀ of฀the฀association,฀but฀CASA฀failed฀to฀market฀itself฀to฀anthropologists฀ and฀sociologists฀across฀the฀continent. The฀second฀event฀was฀a฀spontaneous฀meeting฀of฀African฀anthropologists฀during฀the฀Twelfth฀International฀Congress฀of฀Anthropological฀ and฀Ethnological฀Sciences฀(ICAES)฀in฀Zagreb฀in฀1988.฀The฀ICAES฀is฀the฀ meeting฀of฀the฀International฀Union฀of฀Anthropological฀and฀Ethnological฀ Sciences฀and฀has฀been฀held฀every฀five฀years฀since฀1934.฀In฀1986,฀Lake฀ Nyos฀ in฀ Cameroon฀ exploded,฀ killing฀ more฀ than฀ eighteen฀ hundred฀ people.฀I฀was฀studying฀the฀disaster฀and฀was฀invited฀by฀the฀Center฀for฀ Environmental฀ Studies฀ at฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Leiden,฀ Netherlands,฀ to฀ present฀a฀paper฀at฀the฀ICAES฀on฀how฀anthropologists,฀in฀collaboration฀ with฀colleagues฀from฀other฀disciplines,฀approached฀the฀study฀of฀disaster฀ mitigation. After฀my฀presentation,฀which฀was฀attended฀by฀a฀few฀African฀colleagues,฀ I฀ran฀into฀George฀Hagan฀and฀Albert฀Awedoba,฀from฀Ghana,฀while฀they฀ were฀having฀coffee฀with฀Adam฀Kuper.฀Kuper฀was฀then฀the฀newly฀elected฀ president฀of฀the฀European฀Association฀of฀Social฀Anthropology,฀and฀he฀ encouraged฀the฀three฀of฀us—Hagan,฀Awedoba,฀and฀me—to฀establish฀an฀ African฀anthropological฀association.฀A฀chance฀meeting฀with฀H.฀Russell฀ Bernard฀from฀the฀University฀of฀Florida,฀Gainesville,฀who฀was฀attending฀ the฀ same฀ conference,฀ would฀ also฀ contribute฀ to฀ the฀ PAAA’s฀ training฀ programs.

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The฀ third฀ important฀ event฀ was฀ a฀ workshop฀ organized฀ in฀ 1991฀ by฀ CODESRIA฀ in฀ Dakar฀ to฀ review฀ the฀ status฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ Africa.฀ It฀was฀an฀attempt฀to฀reassert฀CODESRIA’s฀determination฀to฀revive฀or฀ establish฀professional฀associations.฀This฀workshop฀brought฀together฀a฀ small฀group฀of฀established฀anthropologists฀of฀different฀theoretical฀and฀ ideological฀persuasions.฀Most฀participants฀were฀keenly฀aware฀of฀the฀fastpaced฀globalization฀of฀science฀that฀was฀under฀way฀and฀were฀convinced฀ of฀the฀need฀for฀greater฀collaboration฀between฀anthropology฀and฀other฀ social฀sciences.฀For฀example,฀during฀that฀meeting฀I฀argued฀that฀emphasis฀ should฀be฀placed฀on฀the฀reorganization฀of฀the฀discipline฀rather฀than฀ on฀ the฀ “deconstruction”฀ of฀ ethnography,฀ and฀ Abdalla฀ Bujra฀ argued฀ for฀ a฀ constructive฀ engagement฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ the฀ development฀ enterprise. Fourth,฀and฀most฀important,฀was฀the฀discipline’s฀increasing฀engagement฀in฀applied฀work฀generally.฀Although฀anthropologists฀must฀continue฀ to฀produce฀knowledge฀as฀their฀primary฀objective,฀they฀cannot฀remain฀ indifferent฀ to฀ the฀ problems฀ local฀ communities฀ face฀ every฀ day.฀ How฀ many฀anthropologists฀confront฀their฀governments฀for฀failing฀to฀improve฀ the฀quality฀of฀life฀of฀the฀people?฀How฀many฀produce฀ethnographies฀as฀ their฀PhD฀theses,฀obtain฀their฀degrees,฀and฀promote฀their฀careers฀while฀ remaining฀indifferent฀to฀the฀plight฀of฀people฀whom฀they฀studied?฀Of฀ what฀use฀is฀anthropology฀if฀we฀do฀not฀listen฀to฀people฀and฀assist฀them฀ in฀finding฀lasting฀solutions฀to฀their฀daily฀problems?฀Anthropology฀must฀ and฀can฀find฀ways฀to฀survive฀as฀a฀useful฀discipline฀without฀sacrificing฀ scholarship. It฀was฀against฀this฀background฀that฀a฀group฀of฀African฀anthropologists฀ sought฀the฀assistance฀of฀the฀Wenner-Gren฀Foundation฀for฀Anthropological฀ Research฀to฀establish฀the฀Pan฀African฀Anthropological฀Association.฀A฀ few฀of฀the฀Africans฀who฀attended฀the฀1988฀ICAES฀got฀together฀at฀that฀ congress฀ and฀ formed฀ a฀ steering฀ committee฀ to฀ organize฀ a฀ meeting฀ of฀ African฀anthropologists.฀We฀sent฀a฀letter฀to฀vice-chancellors฀of฀African฀ universities,฀asking฀them฀to฀identify฀anthropologists฀who฀might฀attend฀ the฀conference.฀Thirty-five฀participants฀from฀twenty-one฀universities฀ across฀Africa฀attended฀the฀first฀conference,฀held฀in฀September฀1989.฀It฀was฀ organized฀around฀the฀theme฀“Teaching฀and฀Practice฀of฀Anthropology฀in฀ Africa.”฀Approximately฀80฀percent฀of฀the฀participants฀had฀been฀trained฀ as฀anthropologists;฀the฀remainder฀were฀from฀sociology,฀education,฀and฀ philosophy.฀ Some฀ participants฀ described฀ the฀ conference฀ as฀ a฀ unique฀ occasion฀for฀anthropologists฀to฀emerge฀from฀their฀“academic฀bunkers”฀ and฀ practice฀ the฀ discipline฀ openly฀ and฀ with฀ a฀ sense฀ of฀ purpose฀ and฀ pride.

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Since฀1989,฀the฀PAAA฀has฀organized฀twelve฀annual฀conferences฀and฀ a฀series฀of฀training฀workshops฀for฀junior฀anthropologists.฀It฀has฀also฀ worked฀hard฀to฀bring฀the฀discipline฀closer฀to฀other฀social฀sciences.฀The฀ future฀of฀anthropology฀depends,฀we฀feel,฀on฀how฀well฀the฀discipline฀ integrates฀with฀the฀other฀social฀sciences.฀For฀anthropology฀to฀attract฀ funds,฀ it฀ must฀ take฀ on,฀ and฀ bring฀ a฀ unique฀ perspective฀ to,฀ research฀ problems฀that฀are฀common฀to฀other฀social฀science฀disciplines. The฀establishment฀of฀the฀PAAA฀was฀guided฀by฀four฀motivating฀needs:฀ the฀need฀to฀break฀professional฀isolation;฀the฀need฀to฀improve฀teaching฀ and฀ training฀ programs;฀ the฀ need฀ to฀ improve฀ research฀ capacity฀ and฀ enhance฀publication฀possibilities;฀and฀the฀need฀to฀increase฀opportunities฀ for฀ African฀ anthropologists฀ to฀ participate฀ in฀ the฀ growing฀ market฀ for฀ consultants฀ and฀ for฀ their฀ effective฀ participation฀ in฀ multidisciplinary฀ development฀teams.฀All฀of฀these฀desires฀were฀captured฀in฀the฀constitution฀ adopted฀at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀first฀PAAA฀conference. While฀the฀PAAA฀has฀helped฀revive฀anthropology฀on฀the฀continent,฀ Africanists฀in฀Europe฀and฀the฀United฀States฀have฀also฀been฀reorganizing฀ themselves,฀ seeking฀ greater฀ visibility฀ in฀ the฀ world฀ of฀ scholarship฀ in฀ general.฀ In฀ 1991,฀ French฀ scholars฀ established฀ the฀ Association฀ EuroAfricaine฀pour฀l’Anthropologie฀du฀Changement฀Social฀et฀du฀Développement฀(APAD),฀mobilizing฀Africanists฀in฀Europe฀to฀share฀information฀on฀ the฀anthropology฀of฀change.฀In฀the฀United฀States฀in฀the฀early฀1990s,฀ Africanist฀anthropologists฀began฀to฀lobby฀for฀the฀establishment฀of฀an฀ Africanist฀branch฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀Association฀(AAA).฀ Their฀efforts฀were฀rebuffed฀at฀first,฀but฀eventually฀the฀Association฀for฀ Africanist฀Anthropology฀(AfAA)฀was฀established฀within฀the฀AAA.฀Leaders฀ of฀ both฀ initiatives,฀ AfAA฀ and฀ APAD,฀ declared฀ that฀ they฀ would฀ work฀ with฀African฀anthropologists฀to฀promote฀and฀enhance฀the฀discipline฀ on฀the฀continent. Unfortunately,฀after฀more฀than฀a฀decade,฀neither฀AfAA฀nor฀APAD฀has฀ initiated฀constructive฀engagement฀with฀the฀PAAA,฀the฀only฀continentwide฀professional฀association฀of฀anthropologists฀in฀Africa.฀While฀the฀ PAAA฀ has฀ made฀ substantial฀ progress,฀ the฀ problems฀ of฀ running฀ an฀ international฀ organization฀ in฀ Africa฀ are฀ daunting.฀ The฀ constituent฀ national฀bases฀of฀professional฀anthropologists฀remain฀weak,฀because฀of฀ lack฀of฀resources฀at฀the฀local฀level.฀The฀PAAA฀counts฀over฀550฀colleagues฀ among฀its฀members,฀but฀few฀can฀pay฀their฀dues฀regularly฀because฀of฀ the฀low฀salaries฀in฀African฀universities.฀In฀addition,฀members฀cannot฀ finance฀their฀own฀way฀to฀meetings.฀Participants฀in฀the฀PAAA’s฀annual฀ conference฀expect฀the฀organizers฀to฀pay฀all฀expenses,฀and฀this฀is฀unlikely฀ to฀ change฀ for฀ some฀ time.฀ On฀ the฀ other฀ hand,฀ few฀ of฀ our฀ Africanist฀

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colleagues฀in฀anthropology฀from฀wealthier฀parts฀of฀the฀world—including฀ Africans฀ who฀ have฀ migrated฀ to฀ greener฀ pastures—attend฀ the฀ PAAA’s฀ annual฀ conference.฀ Indeed,฀ only฀ one฀ American฀ colleague,฀ Maxwell฀ Owusu฀(University฀of฀Michigan),฀has฀consistently฀attended฀the฀PAAA฀ conferences฀since฀1996.

The฀Constructive฀Engagement฀of฀PAAA To฀assert฀its฀presence฀within฀the฀African฀social฀science฀community,฀the฀ PAAA฀focused฀on฀the฀training฀of฀young฀professionals฀and฀on฀networking฀ activities.฀It฀emphasized฀applied฀anthropology฀as฀the฀focus฀of฀academic฀ work,฀in฀order฀to฀rehabilitate฀a฀discipline฀that฀had฀been฀discredited฀in฀ the฀postcolonial฀era.฀Many฀colleagues฀of฀my฀generation฀in฀Africa฀stood฀ against฀those฀in฀the฀West฀who฀maligned฀applied฀anthropology.฀The฀West฀ invented฀anthropology฀to฀study฀the฀“other,”฀and฀it฀defined฀the฀canons.฀ But฀in฀developing฀economies,฀where฀resources฀are฀scarce,฀science฀has฀ to฀be฀either฀useful฀or฀be฀gone.฀Under฀such฀conditions—when฀the฀socalled฀other฀comes฀to฀study฀itself—disdain฀for฀applied฀anthropology฀ perforce฀dissipates. As฀Conrad฀Kottak฀(1997:฀254)฀described฀it,฀the฀ivory-tower฀approach฀ demands฀ that฀ anthropologists฀ “should฀ avoid฀ practical฀ matters฀ and฀ concentrate฀ on฀ research,฀ publication,฀ and฀ teaching.”฀ Most฀ African฀ anthropologists,฀ however,฀ follow฀ what฀ Kottak฀ called฀ the฀ “schizoid฀ approach.”฀It฀demands฀that฀anthropologists฀“should฀provide฀information฀ for฀policy฀formulation฀but฀should฀not฀be฀part฀of฀the฀implementation฀ process,”฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ keep฀ personal฀ value฀ judgments฀ separate฀ from฀ scientific฀work฀(1997:฀254).฀Advocacy,฀however,฀calls฀for฀greater฀engagement฀of฀anthropologists฀in฀designing฀policies฀that฀promote฀well-being฀or฀ that฀protect฀people฀from฀harmful฀development฀schemes.฀This฀approach฀ motivates฀a฀large฀number฀of฀African฀students฀who฀want฀to฀be฀part฀of฀ the฀anthropological฀enterprise฀without฀being฀castigated฀for฀not฀doing฀ anthropology. Precisely฀ because฀ the฀ applied฀ option฀ dominates฀ anthropology฀ in฀ Africa,฀the฀need฀to฀stay฀current฀in฀method฀and฀theory฀remains฀critical.฀ During฀the฀first฀PAAA฀conference฀in฀1989,฀many฀participants฀argued฀ that฀addressing฀important฀human฀issues,฀such฀as฀the฀need฀for฀health฀ care,฀the฀spread฀of฀famine,฀rapid฀population฀growth,฀environmental฀ degradation,฀discrimination฀and฀violence฀against฀women,฀poverty,฀and฀ ethnic฀violence฀would฀enhance฀the฀discipline’s฀tarnished฀image.฀These฀ problems,฀which฀affect฀the฀most฀vulnerable฀members฀of฀our฀African฀ communities,฀could฀not฀be฀addressed฀without฀appropriate฀training฀in฀

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method฀and฀theory.฀Every฀brand฀of฀anthropology—interpretivist฀and฀ materialist,฀qualitative฀and฀quantitative,฀applied฀and฀basic—must฀aim฀ for฀excellence฀of฀scholarship.฀This฀was฀the฀vision฀for฀the฀PAAA’s฀training฀ program.฀It฀seeks฀to฀increase฀the฀skills฀of฀our฀youngest฀members฀so฀that฀ they฀can฀compete฀successfully฀with฀colleagues฀everywhere฀for฀grants,฀ publications฀ in฀ prestigious฀ journals,฀ consulting฀ work,฀ and฀ academic฀ jobs. The฀association฀established฀professional฀networks฀for฀the฀exchange฀ of฀information฀and฀experiences฀in฀dealing฀with฀human฀suffering฀and฀ problems.฀Members฀of฀these฀networks฀organized฀training฀workshops฀for฀ acquiring฀skills฀in฀writing฀proposals,฀publishing฀the฀results฀of฀research,฀ and฀ using฀ software฀ for฀ data฀ analysis.฀ By฀ addressing฀ contemporary฀ problems,฀ the฀ networks฀ became฀ vehicles฀ for฀ the฀ exchange฀ of฀ ideas฀ and฀experiences.฀This,฀in฀turn,฀enhanced฀the฀teaching฀and฀practice฀of฀ anthropology.3 If฀ the฀ discipline฀ were฀ to฀ survive฀ and฀ make฀ itself฀ visible฀ in฀ Africa,฀ the฀PAAA฀had฀to฀understand฀the฀internal฀logics฀of฀other฀sciences.฀Its฀ members’฀participation฀in฀team฀efforts฀had฀to฀be฀more฀than฀just฀a฀token,฀ with฀an฀anthropologist฀drafted฀into฀a฀project฀simply฀to฀fulfill฀a฀funding฀ condition.฀Anthropologists฀had฀to฀offer฀something฀of฀intellectual฀and฀ practical฀ value.฀ The฀ workshops฀ also฀ attracted฀ other฀ social฀ scientists,฀ enhancing฀ and฀ promoting฀ interdisciplinary฀ collaboration.฀ Over฀ the฀ years,฀African฀anthropologists฀have฀worked฀closely฀with฀environmental฀ biologists,฀ organic฀ chemists,฀ economists,฀ demographers,฀ health฀ care฀ providers,฀and฀others.฀This฀experience฀showed฀that฀multidisciplinary฀ work฀was฀mutually฀enriching,฀because฀each฀discipline฀drew฀on฀its฀unique฀ insights฀to฀attain฀a฀common฀goal. Another฀area฀of฀concern฀was฀the฀shortage฀of฀good฀libraries฀in฀African฀ universities.฀ Few฀ institutions฀ can฀ even฀ afford฀ new฀ books,฀ let฀ alone฀ expand฀their฀library฀space.฀All฀participants฀in฀PAAA฀workshops฀received฀ basic฀training฀in฀computing,฀if฀they฀had฀none,฀or฀upgrading฀of฀their฀ computer฀skills,฀if฀they฀already฀had฀some.฀It฀was฀our฀conviction฀that฀ acquiring฀such฀skills฀would฀empower฀young฀scholars฀to฀access฀libraries฀ abroad฀electronically฀and฀keep฀them฀abreast฀of฀the฀latest฀developments฀ in฀ anthropology.฀ Libraries฀ in฀ African฀ universities฀ could฀ concentrate฀ on฀ collecting฀ materials฀ that฀ were฀ unavailable฀ elsewhere—the฀ sorts฀ of฀materials฀that฀scholars฀everywhere฀require฀for฀research฀on฀African฀ cultures฀and฀societies. One฀of฀the฀problems฀identified฀during฀the฀first฀conference฀was฀the฀lack฀ of฀refereed฀anthropology฀journals฀in฀Africa.฀In฀1992฀we฀established฀the฀ journal฀African฀Anthropology,฀which฀became฀The฀African฀Anthropologist฀in฀

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1994.฀It฀is฀a฀forum฀for฀African฀scholars฀and฀Africanists฀around฀the฀world฀ to฀debate,฀exchange฀ideas,฀and฀contribute฀to฀the฀social฀science฀discourse฀ on฀ issues฀ of฀ importance฀ to฀ the฀ continent.฀ Articles฀ on฀ development฀ issues฀have฀dominated฀the฀journal,฀now฀in฀its฀tenth฀volume.฀Almost฀all฀ articles฀submitted฀for฀publication฀focus฀on฀practical฀issues฀associated฀ with฀health,฀agriculture,฀politics,฀the฀environment,฀ethnicity,฀and฀ethnic฀ conflicts.฀These฀articles฀are฀often฀the฀by-products฀of฀consulting฀work,฀ in฀which฀African฀anthropologists฀are฀increasingly฀involved.฀As฀part฀of฀ its฀efforts฀to฀increase฀the฀quality฀of฀articles,฀the฀PAAA฀includes฀writing฀ clinics฀in฀its฀training฀programs. Although฀many฀of฀the฀PAAA’s฀activities฀have฀been฀successful,฀others฀ have฀not.฀One฀of฀the฀most฀glaring฀failures฀has฀been฀our฀inability฀to฀ incorporate฀the฀growing฀number฀of฀African฀anthropologists฀who฀work฀ full-time฀ outside฀ of฀ academia.฀ The฀ link฀ between฀ this฀ large฀ group฀ of฀ applied฀ anthropologists฀ and฀ those฀ teaching฀ continues฀ to฀ be฀ weak.฀ And฀despite฀their฀growing฀numbers,฀only฀a฀few฀non-academic฀anthropologists฀ have฀ either฀ joined฀ or฀ have฀ chosen฀ to฀ participate฀ in฀ PAAA฀ programs฀ or฀ publications.฀ Although฀ a฀ similar฀ problem฀ plagues฀ the฀ mainline฀anthropology฀associations฀in฀Europe฀and฀North฀America,฀the฀ implications฀of฀this฀nonparticipation฀are฀more฀serious฀in฀Africa,฀given฀ its฀profound฀effects฀on฀training฀and฀employment.

Africanists฀and฀Their฀Responsibilities I฀have฀attempted฀to฀tell฀the฀PAAA’s฀story฀from฀the฀perspective฀of฀an฀African฀ who฀was฀strongly฀affected฀by฀the฀resurgence฀of฀African฀anthropology฀ and฀sociology.฀My฀motive฀for฀writing฀this฀chapter฀has฀been฀to฀provide฀ some฀insights฀into฀the฀ways฀in฀which฀a฀North-South฀partnership฀might฀ be฀fostered฀and฀reinforced. The฀European฀and฀American฀traditions฀of฀anthropology฀are฀distinct,฀ and฀the฀discipline฀surely฀deserves฀an฀African฀twist฀as฀well.฀It฀is฀time฀for฀ the฀social฀sciences,฀including฀anthropology,฀across฀Africa฀to฀regroup฀ and฀face฀the฀challenges฀that฀confront฀us฀as฀a฀continent฀and฀as฀part฀of฀ the฀ human฀ family:฀ disease,฀ hunger,฀ HIV/AIDS,฀ ethnic฀ wars,฀ poverty.฀ We฀need฀to฀look฀for฀answers฀to฀these฀scourges.฀It฀will฀be฀salutary฀for฀ Africans฀to฀bring฀their฀particular฀perspectives฀to฀all฀the฀social฀sciences,฀ including฀ anthropology;฀ but฀ in฀ science,฀ as฀ Russell฀ Bernard฀ (2000:฀ 6)฀ said,฀anything฀that฀is฀true฀in฀London฀or฀Paris฀is฀also฀true฀in฀Nairobi฀ and฀ Dakar.฀ There฀ is฀ a฀ visceral฀ reaction฀ among฀ many฀ intellectuals฀ in฀ the฀social฀sciences฀today฀against฀a฀scientific,฀or฀positivist,฀perspective.฀

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It฀is฀particularly฀strong฀in฀anthropology,฀but฀African฀anthropologists,฀ at฀least฀in฀some฀circles฀today,฀are฀rejecting฀this฀anti-science฀perspective฀ and฀taking฀a฀leadership฀role฀in฀anthropology฀and฀development. Although฀most฀Northern฀academics฀acknowledge฀the฀critical฀importance฀of฀working฀with฀colleagues฀from฀Africa,฀this฀has฀occurred฀only฀on฀ a฀case-by-case฀basis,฀with฀the฀Northern฀anthropologist฀almost฀always฀ taking฀ the฀ lead.฀ That฀ is,฀ their฀ African฀ academic฀ colleagues฀ are฀ seen฀ as฀key฀contacts฀for฀getting฀research฀clearance฀and฀background฀knowledge,฀ without฀ which฀ the฀ Northern฀ colleagues฀ could฀ not฀ function.฀ It฀ is฀ rare,฀ however,฀ that฀ the฀ cash฀ resources฀ brought฀ in฀ by฀ Northern฀ academics฀ are฀ shared฀ appropriately฀ with฀ their฀ Southern฀ partners฀ or฀ partner฀institutions. Almost฀every฀day,฀one฀or฀another฀of฀us฀in฀Africa฀is฀confronted฀with฀ the฀ myopic฀ bellyaching฀ of฀ some฀ First฀ World฀ anthropologists฀ about฀ the฀harsh฀conditions฀under฀which฀they฀work฀in฀their฀own฀country— their฀lack฀of฀funding฀for฀graduate฀assistants,฀their฀lack฀of฀funding฀for฀ attending฀ international฀ meetings,฀ and฀ so฀ on—with฀ little฀ reference฀ to฀ the฀ conditions฀ under฀ which฀ their฀ African-based฀ colleagues฀ labor.฀ These฀small,฀subtle฀indignities฀mirror฀deeper฀inequities฀that฀are฀only฀ partially฀mitigated฀by฀the฀fat฀per฀diems฀that฀one฀may฀occasionally฀earn฀ by฀attending฀a฀five-day฀conference฀in฀northern฀Europe฀or฀the฀United฀ States.฀The฀$600–1,000฀that฀one฀might฀save฀by฀eating฀crackers฀in฀one’s฀ room฀rather฀than฀dining฀out฀is฀cold฀comfort฀when฀one฀returns฀to฀the฀ everyday฀realities฀of฀a฀$350-per-month฀salary,฀five฀children,฀and฀ne’erdo-well฀relatives฀who฀depend฀on฀you. African฀academics฀don’t฀want฀a฀handout;฀they฀want฀opportunities฀to฀ work฀and฀earn฀their฀way.฀These฀opportunities฀exist฀and฀can฀be฀expanded฀ and฀strengthened฀to฀benefit฀all฀the฀parties฀involved,฀including฀the฀First฀ World฀anthropologists฀who฀collaborate฀with฀them.฀To฀bring฀this฀about฀ requires฀small฀but฀doable฀changes฀in฀formal฀academic฀training฀programs,฀ grant฀administration฀procedures,฀and฀grant฀requirements,฀to฀promote฀ better฀partnership฀arrangements.฀These฀changes฀will฀need฀to฀be฀made฀ in฀both฀African฀and฀Northern฀universities฀as฀well฀as฀in฀the฀professional฀ associations.฀ Strengthening฀ the฀ ability฀ of฀ Africans฀ to฀ organize฀ and฀ develop฀their฀own฀professional฀associations฀is฀a฀way฀to฀address฀all฀these฀ issues฀at฀once.฀Truly฀professional฀associations฀will฀link฀Northern฀and฀ African฀anthropologists฀in฀a฀single฀intellectual,฀publishing,฀and฀teaching฀ endeavor฀on฀a฀more฀equal฀footing.

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Notes 1.฀ As฀a฀local฀anthropologist,฀I฀was฀called฀upon฀on฀several฀occasions฀to฀participate฀in฀multidisciplinary฀team฀research฀bringing฀anthropological฀insights฀to฀ bear฀on฀health฀issues.฀For฀example,฀in฀early฀2000,฀an฀outbreak฀of฀cholera฀in฀ Madagascar฀killed฀over฀a฀thousand฀people฀within฀a฀few฀months.฀The฀World฀ Health฀Organization’s฀regional฀headquarters฀in฀Harare฀asked฀me฀to฀join฀a฀team฀ of฀medical฀experts฀in฀Madagascar฀to฀evaluate฀the฀epidemic.฀The฀team,฀comprising฀two฀public฀health฀specialists,฀a฀physician,฀an฀epidemiologist,฀and฀an฀ anthropologist,฀spent฀four฀weeks฀visiting฀the฀affected฀areas,฀talking฀to฀health฀ officials,฀the฀military,฀local฀people,฀and฀politicians.฀At฀the฀end฀of฀the฀visit,฀after฀ examining฀the฀ethnographic฀information฀and฀talking฀to฀officials฀about฀their฀ prevention฀strategies,฀I฀produced฀a฀model฀that฀took฀into฀account฀the฀role฀of฀ culture฀in฀the฀epidemic,฀and฀we฀recommended฀a฀drastic฀review฀of฀prevention฀ strategies฀taking฀into฀account฀cultural฀inputs. 2.฀ These฀two฀were฀Pierre฀Titi฀and฀Joseph฀Mboui.฀The฀latter฀became฀a฀full฀professor฀after฀obtaining฀his฀doctorat฀d’état.฀He฀later฀became฀dean,฀and฀then฀adviser฀ to฀the฀prime฀minister.฀He฀ended฀his฀career฀as฀a฀minister฀of฀national฀education,฀ after฀serving฀as฀permanent฀secretary.฀He฀is฀now฀a฀Member฀of฀Parliament,฀along฀ with฀two฀other฀anthropologists. 3.฀ As฀a฀matter฀of฀record,฀from฀1992฀to฀1999,฀the฀PAAA฀trained฀153฀mid-career฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ workshops฀ supported฀ by฀ donations฀ from฀ the฀ Carnegie฀ Corporation฀ ($200,000),฀ the฀ Wenner-Gren฀ Foundation฀ for฀ Anthropological฀ Research฀($100,000),฀the฀World฀Bank฀($15,000),฀UNFPA฀($35,000),฀and฀UNESCO฀ ($30,000).฀These฀trainees฀belonged฀to฀the฀following฀networks:฀the฀Network฀of฀ African฀Medical฀Anthropologists฀(NAMA),฀the฀Network฀of฀African฀Population฀ Anthropologists฀ (NAPA),฀ the฀ Network฀ of฀ African฀ Women฀ Anthropologists฀ (NAWA),฀ the฀ Network฀ of฀ African฀ Environmental฀ Anthropologists฀ (NAEA),฀ the฀Network฀of฀African฀Students฀in฀Anthropology฀(NASA),฀and฀ETHNO-NET฀ AFRICA.฀This฀last฀network฀grew฀out฀of฀a฀meeting฀in฀Nairobi฀in฀1995,฀sponsored฀ by฀the฀UNESCO-MOST฀program,฀on฀the฀social฀problems฀facing฀the฀continent.฀ ETHNO-NET฀was฀designed฀as฀a฀network฀of฀African฀social฀scientists฀who฀can฀ work฀together฀to฀collect฀data฀and฀who฀can฀serve฀as฀an฀advance฀warning฀system฀ for฀ethnic฀conflicts.

Part 3 Epistemological, Sociological, and Disciplinary Predicaments

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Generating Nontrivial Knowledge in Awkward Situations Anthropology in the United Kingdom

Eeva Berglund

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nlivening฀ anthropology’s฀ intellectual฀ project฀ and฀ reassessing฀ its฀ political฀role฀require฀understanding฀the฀conditions฀of฀power฀within฀ which฀culture฀and฀difference฀become฀matters฀of฀justice,฀if฀not฀life฀and฀ death.฀ It฀ also฀ requires฀ understanding฀ the฀ transformations฀ going฀ on฀ across฀universities฀everywhere,฀such฀as฀the฀intensifying฀efforts฀by฀private฀ capital฀ to฀ penetrate—or฀ swallow฀ up—the฀ production฀ of฀ academic฀ knowledge. When฀I฀was฀contacted฀about฀the฀symposium฀“World฀Anthropologies”฀ in฀the฀spring฀of฀2002,฀both฀these฀questions฀troubled฀me.฀I฀had฀just฀decided฀ to฀resign฀from฀my฀job฀at฀one฀of฀the฀liveliest฀anthropology฀departments฀in฀ the฀United฀Kingdom—Goldsmiths฀College฀of฀the฀University฀of฀London.฀ I฀resented฀its฀relentless฀productivism,฀felt฀hampered฀by฀lack฀of฀funds,฀was฀ frustrated฀by฀administrative฀time฀wasting,฀and฀sensed฀confusion฀about฀ pedagogical฀aims฀and฀the฀discipline’s฀public฀role.฀And฀yet฀my฀regrets฀ are฀ massive,฀ not฀ least฀ because฀ so฀ much฀ has฀ recently฀ happened฀ that฀ could฀strengthen฀British฀anthropology.฀Here฀I฀reflect฀on฀the฀changing฀ pressures฀ on฀ our฀ discipline,฀ highlighting,฀ nevertheless,฀ the฀ fact฀ that฀ we฀already฀have฀tools฀for฀thinking฀about฀the฀new฀challenges.฀For฀as฀I฀ considered฀“world฀anthropologies”฀from฀the฀perspective฀of฀the฀United฀ Kingdom,฀I฀immediately฀thought฀about฀scholars’฀growing฀interest฀there฀ in฀research฀on฀modernity฀at฀home฀and฀about฀the฀potentially฀beneficial฀ effects฀of฀ceasing฀to฀worry฀about฀what฀“real”฀anthropology฀is฀and฀where฀ it฀ should฀ be฀ done.฀ The฀ analysis฀ of฀ people฀ like฀ ourselves—tourists,฀

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activists,฀administrators—will฀promote฀a฀thorough฀investigation฀of฀our฀ own฀motives฀and฀institutional฀limitations. Predictably,฀some฀people฀have฀misgivings฀about฀turning฀toward฀the฀ modern฀at฀home;฀some฀see฀it฀as฀a฀lazy฀retreat฀from฀anthropology’s฀traditional฀field,฀the฀“margins.”฀However,฀ecumenical฀styles฀of฀questioning฀ and฀ more฀ inclusive฀ views฀ of฀ appropriate฀ research฀ locations฀ suggest฀ that฀anthropology’s฀oyster฀is฀the฀whole฀world.฀Furthermore,฀inclusive฀ definitions฀of฀anthropology’s฀subject฀matter฀may฀challenge฀hegemonic฀ views฀of฀the฀world฀as฀it฀is฀invoked฀in฀“world฀music”฀or฀“world฀markets.”฀ There฀is฀even฀hope฀that฀turning฀toward฀the฀modern฀at฀home฀will฀help฀ undo฀some฀of฀the฀Eurocentrisms฀that฀still฀plague฀us.฀Notably,฀where฀ anthropologists฀are฀both฀analysts฀and฀case฀studies,฀knowledge฀cannot฀ be฀predicated฀on฀distinctions฀such฀as฀us฀versus฀them฀or฀complex฀versus฀ simple.

Culture,฀Information฀and฀the฀Changing฀Role฀of฀ Academia Like฀all฀other฀disciplines,฀anthropology฀has฀adapted฀to฀a฀managerialist฀ style฀ of฀ work,฀ with฀ administrative฀ processes฀ taking฀ up฀ considerable฀ energy.฀As฀a฀relatively฀junior฀member฀of฀the฀department,฀I฀shouldered฀ a฀manageable฀administrative฀load,฀but฀if฀I฀had฀progressed฀up฀the฀career฀ ladder,฀it฀could฀only฀have฀gotten฀worse.฀Staff฀members฀I฀knew฀in฀many฀ departments฀regularly฀tried฀to฀get฀around฀or฀ignore฀administrative฀demands.฀Humor฀was฀an฀acceptable฀coping฀strategy.฀One฀tongue-in-cheek฀ suggestion฀was฀to฀mark฀examination฀scripts฀or฀to฀review฀manuscripts฀ by฀ reading฀ only฀ the฀ first฀ and฀ last฀ pages,฀ plus฀ one฀ in฀ the฀ middle—฀ surely฀enough฀to฀give฀one฀a฀sense฀of฀a฀text’s฀caliber.฀Some฀genuinely฀ labor-saving฀practices฀were฀implemented.฀For฀example,฀we฀decided฀to฀ collate฀data฀on฀student฀absences฀at฀certain฀intervals฀only,฀instead฀of฀ recording฀them฀continuously.฀But฀even฀then฀we฀remained฀annoyed฀by฀ the฀very฀demand฀that฀we฀keep฀such฀records.฀Other฀tactics฀I฀have฀come฀ across฀include฀simply฀leaving฀allotted฀tasks฀undone.฀Indeed,฀a฀relatively฀ convincing฀argument฀for฀pursuing฀this฀method฀is฀that฀if฀left฀unattended฀ long฀enough,฀forms,฀letters,฀and฀other฀bits฀of฀paper฀tend฀to฀lose฀their฀ importance฀anyway.฀At฀the฀same฀time,฀normally฀just฀enough฀people฀ elsewhere฀ in฀ the฀ institution฀ will฀ participate฀ in฀ the฀ creation฀ of฀ paper฀ trails฀for฀the฀administration฀to฀continue฀to฀operate. The฀ lack฀ of฀ trust฀ that฀ the฀ political฀ establishment฀ shows฀ toward฀ higher฀education฀in฀the฀United฀Kingdom,฀like฀that฀toward฀public฀sector฀ employees฀more฀broadly,฀is฀not฀just฀causing฀problems฀of฀morale฀but฀

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taking฀up฀scarce฀resources฀and฀staff฀energies.฀Proverbially,฀audits฀like฀the฀ Research฀Assessment฀Exercise฀(RAE),฀along฀with฀the฀Teaching฀Quality฀ Assessment฀that฀departments฀have฀to฀undergo฀in฀turn,฀are฀the฀curse฀ of฀practicing฀academics฀across฀the฀UK.฀They฀are฀designed฀to฀increase฀ public฀scrutiny฀of฀universities฀and฀to฀help฀funding฀bodies฀allocate฀public฀ resources฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ encourage฀ productivity.฀ But฀ the฀ overwhelming฀ sense฀ is฀ that฀ they฀ are฀ exhausting,฀ even฀ crippling,฀ to฀ the฀ intellectual฀ project฀of฀the฀universities.฀This฀is฀so฀despite฀the฀fact฀that,฀anecdotally฀ speaking,฀many฀anthropology฀departments฀were฀pleased฀with฀the฀new฀ life฀that฀the฀1992฀RAE฀breathed฀into฀the฀discipline.฀But฀as฀the฀pressures฀ continued,฀a฀new฀word฀crept฀into฀the฀vocabulary฀of฀staff฀hiring:฀RAEability,฀ that฀ is,฀ the฀ capacity฀ to฀ display฀ highly฀ competitive฀ academic฀ results.฀Put฀even฀more฀bluntly,฀constant฀professional฀auditing฀means฀ that฀even฀moderately฀ambitious฀academics฀must฀invest฀huge฀energies฀in฀ publishing฀and฀being฀seen฀to฀publish,฀and฀in฀securing฀external฀funding฀ and฀being฀seen฀to฀secure฀it. Though฀ still฀ earning฀ comfortably฀ above-average฀ wages,฀ academics฀ are฀ unhappy฀ that฀ their฀ pay฀ has฀ fallen฀ behind฀ the฀ overall฀ growth฀ in฀ average฀ earnings฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ Kingdom.฀ Economic฀ conditions฀ in฀ higher฀education฀as฀a฀whole฀have฀been฀cause฀for฀concern฀ever฀since฀the฀ Thatcher฀administration’s฀assault฀on฀social฀research.1฀The฀Blair฀government’s฀questionable฀goal฀of฀increasing฀student฀numbers฀to฀50฀percent฀of฀ the฀age฀group฀and฀the฀lack฀of฀new฀investments฀and฀teaching฀posts,฀not฀ to฀mention฀funding฀cuts,฀are฀the฀most฀obvious฀causes฀of฀complaint. Anthropology฀is฀by฀no฀means฀alone฀in฀having฀to฀transform฀its฀curriculum฀or฀its฀working฀practices฀under฀external฀pressures.฀Most฀academics฀ express฀ nostalgia฀ for฀ an฀ apparently฀ simpler,฀ and฀ certainly฀ less฀ pressured,฀ past.฀ But฀ these฀ changes฀ have฀ not฀ happened฀ completely฀ without฀reflection฀and฀certainly฀not฀without฀resistance,฀as฀numerous฀ academic฀(e.g.,฀Shattock฀1992)฀and฀news฀articles฀(e.g.,฀Economist฀2002)฀ attest. In฀some฀ways,฀of฀course,฀anthropology’s฀crisis฀is฀specific.฀According฀ to฀ Jonathan฀ Spencer฀ (2000),฀ large฀ departments฀ are฀ coping฀ well฀ and฀ even฀ flourishing,฀ but฀ smaller฀ ones฀ are฀ under฀ constant฀ strain฀ as฀ they฀ adapt฀to฀changes฀in฀student฀numbers,฀course฀content,฀administrative฀ structures,฀ and฀ both฀ student฀ and฀ research฀ funding฀ at฀ an฀ exhausting฀ pace.฀Personal฀experience฀and฀anecdotal฀evidence฀suggests฀that฀even฀ in฀the฀higher-profile฀departments,฀administrative฀changes฀have฀taken฀ their฀toll฀on฀academic฀work,฀not฀to฀mention฀morale.2 The฀implications฀of฀these฀changes฀are฀increasingly฀being฀debated฀in฀ professional฀publications฀such฀as฀Anthropology฀Today฀(AT),฀the฀2003฀issues฀

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of฀which฀tackled฀anthropology’s฀future฀as,฀respectively,฀a฀professional฀ discipline฀(Sillitoe฀2003),฀an฀undergraduate฀subject฀(Mills฀2003),฀and฀ a฀player฀in฀the฀public฀arena฀of฀cultural฀politics฀(Eriksen฀2003;฀Kurkiala฀ 2003).฀Such฀interventions฀are฀absolutely฀vital,฀even฀if฀they฀engender฀ “feelings฀of฀concern฀and฀frustration,”฀as฀one฀letter฀to฀AT฀put฀it฀(HughesFreeland฀2003).฀My฀point฀is฀that฀if฀cultural฀identity฀is฀now฀a฀matter฀ of฀public฀urgency฀as฀well฀as฀anthropology’s฀principal฀subject฀matter,฀ then฀the฀discipline฀is฀being฀asked฀to฀adopt฀a฀responsible฀public฀role฀in฀ difficult฀circumstances. Hesitations฀also฀stem฀from฀the฀way฀in฀which฀anthropology’s฀claim฀ to฀speak฀authoritatively฀about฀its฀subject฀matter฀has฀for฀so฀long฀been฀ subject฀ to฀ critique฀ and฀ self-criticism.฀ Yet฀ this฀ has฀ to฀ do฀ with฀ geopolitical฀transformations฀that฀inevitably฀touch฀not฀only฀academia฀but฀ also฀ governments฀ and฀ other฀ sponsors.฀ Since฀ anthropology฀ became฀ professionalized฀ nearly฀ one฀ hundred฀ years฀ ago,฀ the฀ world฀ has฀ been฀ remade฀and฀reclassified฀in฀ways฀that฀problematize฀the฀boundaries฀of฀its฀ expertise.฀The฀discipline฀has฀seen฀disillusionment฀with฀science,฀post– Cold฀War฀hesitations,฀the฀growth฀of฀cultural฀studies฀departments,฀and฀ the฀ blurring฀ of฀ the฀ boundary฀ between฀ sociology฀ and฀ anthropology,฀ among฀other฀things. The฀rise฀of฀culture฀as฀a฀hegemonic฀preoccupation฀draws฀attention฀to฀ anthropology฀but฀also฀diminishes฀its฀claim฀to฀unique฀expertise.฀With฀ exemplars฀such฀as฀Malinowski฀and฀Lévi-Strauss,฀anthropology฀is฀not฀hard฀ to฀criticize฀as฀little฀more฀than฀a฀glorified฀form฀of฀travel,฀and฀there฀remain฀ similarities฀between฀being฀an฀anthropologist฀and฀being฀just฀a฀typically฀ modern฀traveler฀(see฀Augé฀1999).฀By฀the฀end฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century฀ everyone,฀from฀tourists฀to฀niche฀marketers฀to฀leaders฀of฀the฀so-called฀ free฀world,฀seemed฀to฀have฀become฀interested฀in฀cultural฀difference.฀ Individuals฀are฀increasingly฀preoccupied฀with฀constructing฀identities,฀ but฀as฀anthropologists,฀we฀know฀that฀modernity,฀as฀a฀form฀of฀social฀ organization,฀engenders฀self-consciousness฀about฀cultural฀identity. In฀the฀United฀Kingdom,฀identity฀politics฀grew฀up฀under฀Thatcherism,฀ so฀that฀the฀explanatory฀force฀of฀culture฀in฀social฀and฀political฀debate฀has฀ since฀become฀a฀commonplace฀of฀politics.฀A฀culture฀of฀mismanagement฀ is฀ singled฀ out฀ as฀ the฀ culprit฀ when฀ public฀ services฀ such฀ as฀ hospitals฀ and฀schools฀are฀failing;฀the฀culture฀of฀an฀ethnic฀group฀is฀an฀acceptable฀ explanation฀ for฀ underachievement,฀ violence,฀ and฀ poverty.฀ In฀ short,฀ culture฀is฀a฀cause,฀not฀something฀that฀invites฀curiosity฀and฀examination.฀ Not฀the฀least฀of฀the฀implications฀of฀this฀is฀that฀it฀keeps฀alive฀the฀question฀ at฀the฀heart฀of฀Thatcherism,฀“Are฀you฀one฀of฀us?”฀(Hall฀1993:฀356).฀In฀ today’s฀ Britain,฀ this฀ question฀ is฀ as฀ ubiquitous฀ as฀ it฀ was฀ fifteen฀ years฀ ago.

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The฀ concept฀ of฀ culture฀ has฀ also฀ helped฀ to฀ aestheticize฀ inequality.฀ Multiculturalism฀gets฀packaged฀as฀a฀sales฀item฀by฀governments,฀as฀in฀ New฀Labour’s฀late-1990s฀slogan฀“Cool฀Britannia”฀(Parekh฀1998),฀and฀by฀ companies฀such฀as฀Benetton฀(Lury฀2000).฀The฀intellectual฀aim฀of฀those฀ with฀the฀privilege฀of฀academic฀reflection฀has฀to฀be฀a฀critical฀study฀of฀ such฀uses฀of฀culture.฀It฀was฀around฀these฀themes฀that฀cultural฀studies฀ came฀ into฀ its฀ own,฀ with฀ bookshops,฀ if฀ not฀ university฀ campuses฀ (see฀ note฀3),฀classifying฀much฀critical฀scholarship฀under฀that฀category.฀But฀ the฀charge฀is฀often฀made—certainly฀in฀corridor฀talk—that฀sociologically฀ argued฀debate฀over฀culture฀quickly฀implodes฀into฀an฀arcane฀or฀showy฀ internal฀argument. Fortunately,฀arguing฀the฀case฀for฀examining฀the฀changing฀conceptualization฀ of฀ culture฀ and฀ its฀ role฀ in฀ sustaining฀ social฀ relations฀ in฀ a฀ globalized฀world,฀Stuart฀Hall฀and฀his฀colleagues฀at฀the฀Birmingham฀Centre฀ of฀Contemporary฀Cultural฀Studies฀generated฀diffuse฀but฀influential฀work฀ in฀sociology฀and฀cultural฀studies.3฀Its฀key฀contribution฀has฀undoubtedly฀ been฀to฀highlight฀race฀and฀the฀legacy฀of฀imperialism฀as฀building฀blocks฀ of฀social฀life฀at฀home.฀The฀sophistication฀with฀which฀the฀complexities฀of฀ race,฀history,฀and฀power฀have฀been฀treated฀by฀authors฀such฀as฀Hall฀and฀ Paul฀Gilroy,฀whose฀associations฀are฀with฀cultural฀studies฀and฀sociology,฀ means฀that฀their฀publications฀will฀probably฀remain฀compulsory฀references฀for฀anthropologists฀who฀investigate฀contemporary฀Britain. The฀ relationship฀ between฀ cultural฀ studies฀ and฀ anthropology฀ has฀ been฀checkered฀(Nugent฀and฀Shore฀1997).฀Collaboration฀flourishes฀at฀ the฀ research฀ level฀ and฀ is฀ trickling฀ down฀ to฀ undergraduate฀ teaching.฀ Nevertheless,฀many฀anthropologists฀are฀critical฀of฀non-anthropologists’฀ definitions฀of฀ethnography฀and฀uneasy฀with฀the฀perceived฀mismatch฀ between฀cultural฀studies’฀claim฀to฀political฀radicalism,฀on฀one฀hand,฀ and฀ the฀ closeness฀ of฀ its฀ subject฀ matter฀ to฀ the฀ preoccupations฀ of฀ the฀ political฀and฀economic฀elites,฀on฀the฀other.฀Indeed,฀John฀Hutnyk฀(2002)฀ has฀shown฀that฀both฀cultural฀studies฀and฀what฀he฀dubs฀“post-colonial฀ anthropology”฀(with฀the฀scare฀quotes)฀can฀be฀caricatured฀as฀intellectual฀ fashions,฀co-opted฀by฀capital฀via฀the฀global฀culture฀industries. Before฀culture฀was฀problematized฀publicly฀as฀an฀important฀political฀ issue฀in฀the฀1980s,฀anthropologists฀could฀claim฀a฀theoretical฀canon฀ to฀help฀identify฀the฀truly฀anthropological.฀That฀canon฀now฀seems฀ too฀diffuse฀to฀provide฀grounds฀for฀claims฀to฀nontrivial฀knowledge,฀ and฀in-depth฀ethnography฀now฀tends฀to฀be฀invoked฀as฀the฀source฀of฀ anthropological฀authority.฀This฀means฀that฀anthropology฀remains฀ an฀empirical฀pursuit฀at฀the฀same฀time฀it฀embraces฀a฀humanistic฀and฀ hermeneutic฀style.

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It฀is,฀however,฀in฀the฀interlacing฀of฀its฀practitioners’฀theoretical฀and฀ empirical฀concerns฀that฀the฀strengths฀of฀anthropology’s฀tool฀kit฀are฀most฀ apparent.4฀Ethnographic฀method฀today฀engenders฀self-consciousness฀ about฀moving฀between฀locations฀as฀much฀as฀it฀ever฀did,฀but฀ethnographers฀ are฀increasingly฀preoccupied฀with฀what฀connects฀those฀locations,฀both฀ to฀each฀other฀and฀to฀shared฀contexts฀of฀power฀(Gupta฀and฀Ferguson฀ 1997b).฀This฀means฀that฀as฀ethnographers฀pay฀attention฀to฀the฀realities฀ with฀which฀people฀have฀to฀live,฀they฀become฀co-present฀with฀their฀hosts,฀ bringing฀together฀different฀“worlds.”฀Also,฀ethnographic฀process,฀from฀ fieldwork฀to฀text฀or฀lecture,฀forces฀attention฀onto฀the฀rather฀obvious฀ point฀that฀answers฀depend฀on฀which฀questions,฀when฀and฀where,฀are฀ being฀asked.฀Thus,฀emphasizing฀the฀empirical฀does฀not฀squeeze฀out฀the฀ theoretical,฀leaving฀us฀with฀specificity฀only;฀it฀simply฀helps฀focus฀it.฀ As฀Johannes฀Fabian฀put฀it฀at฀the฀“World฀Anthropologies”฀symposium,฀ theory฀should฀not฀be฀reduced฀to฀“having฀a฀position”;฀rather,฀it฀is฀about฀ being฀on฀the฀move. Where฀anthropology฀interrogates฀the฀culture฀concept฀reflexively,฀in฀ all฀its฀myriad฀contexts,฀it฀is฀likely฀to฀remain฀a฀key฀theoretical฀focus.฀An฀ increasingly฀prominent฀anthropological฀critique฀of฀the฀uses฀of฀culture฀is฀ that฀they฀tend฀to฀render฀exploitation฀and฀inequality,฀which฀are฀politicoeconomic฀issues,฀into฀safe฀and฀relatively฀trivial฀matters฀(e.g.,฀Anderson฀ and฀Berglund฀2003).฀A฀key฀example฀is฀when฀“difference”฀is฀reduced฀to฀ exoticism฀(e.g.,฀Hutnyk฀2000).฀In฀other฀contexts,฀however,฀anthropology฀ demonstrates฀ that฀ “culture”฀ can฀ also฀ be฀ empowering฀ and฀ can฀ be฀ a฀ resource.฀My฀point฀is฀that฀anthropologists฀can฀approach฀culture฀quite฀ differently฀from฀situation฀to฀situation.฀Equally฀importantly,฀they฀can฀ approach฀it฀differently฀from฀the฀manner฀of฀governments฀and฀corporate฀ actors,฀ for฀ whom฀ culture฀ is฀ increasingly฀ reduced฀ to฀ its฀ potential฀ for฀ “wealth฀creation.”฀In฀that฀context,฀culture฀is฀difference,฀but฀only฀within฀ safe฀limits,฀and฀only฀so฀long฀as฀it฀does฀not฀threaten฀the฀status฀quo. Culture฀appears฀problematic,฀but฀knowledge฀and฀information฀also฀ pose฀problems฀for฀critical฀anthropology.฀As฀elsewhere,฀the฀promises฀of฀ the฀information฀age฀in฀the฀United฀Kingdom฀are฀part฀of฀the฀discourse฀ of฀“wealth฀creation,”฀now฀the฀neoliberal฀state’s฀primary฀concern.฀Uses฀ of฀the฀word฀“information”฀tend฀toward฀reducing฀it฀(to฀binary฀code฀in฀ many฀instances)฀and฀making฀it฀possible฀to฀commercialize฀it฀(or฀use฀it฀to฀ sell฀something฀else).฀A฀parallel฀logic฀is฀at฀work฀in฀the฀way฀education฀has฀ become฀a฀way฀of฀certifying฀“transferable฀skills,”฀defined฀by฀UK฀agencies฀ as฀banalities฀such฀as฀“communication฀skills,฀written฀and฀oral,”฀or฀“ability฀ to฀present฀knowledge฀or฀an฀argument฀in฀a฀way฀which฀is฀comprehensible฀ to฀others฀and฀which฀is฀directed฀at฀their฀concerns”฀(quoted฀in฀Goodland฀ 2002:฀401).

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Regarding฀ both฀ information฀ and฀ skills,฀ universities฀ and฀ research฀ institutions฀are฀center฀stage,฀apparently฀promising฀the฀keys฀to฀knowledgeintensive฀wealth฀and฀prosperity฀in฀the฀future.฀State฀and฀corporate฀elites฀ now฀routinely฀refer฀to฀education฀as฀the฀base฀or฀ground฀upon฀which฀ economic฀competitiveness฀can฀be฀built,฀and฀they฀increasingly฀treat฀it฀ as฀the฀machinery฀with฀which฀to฀construct฀the฀environment฀necessary฀ for฀ supporting฀ global฀ capitalism.฀ The฀ architects฀ of฀ education฀ policy฀ must฀know฀that฀knowledge฀is฀and฀always฀has฀been฀about฀complexity฀ and฀variety,฀but฀these฀things฀get฀sidelined฀in฀the฀short-term฀goals฀of฀ corporation-friendly฀government.฀In฀short,฀universities’฀social฀function฀ has฀ changed:฀ they฀ are฀ being฀ asked฀ to฀ become฀ direct฀ incubators฀ of฀ wealth฀creation.฀Academics฀have฀voiced฀their฀dissatisfaction฀with฀this฀ trend,฀but฀they฀have฀also฀acquiesced฀in฀it.฀Outcomes฀are฀contingent฀on฀ circumstances฀in฀and฀around฀specific฀departments฀and฀on฀the฀efforts฀ of฀individual฀academics฀and฀research฀students. Where฀ academic฀ research฀ and฀ teaching฀ are฀ expected฀ to฀ pay฀ for฀ themselves,฀anthropology฀is฀unlikely฀to฀become฀a฀money฀spinner.฀It฀ remains฀too฀caught฀up฀in฀tensions฀that฀arise฀from฀a฀historiography฀that฀is฀ firmly฀anchored฀in฀the฀rise฀of฀modern฀science฀and฀Western฀imperialism฀ yet฀has฀a฀strong฀identification฀with฀the฀global฀South.฀It฀tends฀to฀lend฀ support฀to฀the฀counterhegemonic฀rather฀than฀to฀the฀status฀quo.฀Since฀the฀ “cultural฀turn”฀brought฀geographers,฀sociologists,฀scholars฀of฀literature฀ and฀the฀arts,฀and฀historians฀closer฀together—some฀of฀them฀anyway— the฀special฀privilege฀of฀anthropology฀in฀the฀realm฀of฀culture฀has฀been฀ modified.฀It฀now฀needs฀to฀respond฀to฀the฀claims฀of฀other฀professionals,฀ particularly฀those฀in฀cultural฀studies,฀to฀expertise฀in฀the฀area฀of฀culture.฀ Departments฀are฀anxious฀about฀the฀effects฀of฀the฀proliferation฀of฀degree฀ programs฀in฀media฀and฀cultural฀studies.฀Anthropologists฀watch฀with฀ concern฀as฀government฀rhetoric฀of฀efficiency฀and฀transparency฀casts฀a฀ favorable฀light฀on฀media฀studies,฀because฀students฀increasingly฀enter฀ it฀ believing฀ that฀ they฀ can฀ subsequently฀ apply฀ their฀ degree฀ skills฀ in฀ work฀beyond฀academia.฀That฀there฀is฀disagreement฀over฀the฀academic฀ respectability฀of฀media฀studies฀alters฀neither฀the฀fiscal฀situation฀nor฀the฀ continuing฀growth฀of฀degree฀programs฀in฀media฀and฀cultural฀studies. Where฀disciplinary฀boundaries฀are฀debated,฀the฀old฀question฀about฀ whether฀ something฀ is฀ or฀ is฀ not฀ anthropology฀ is฀ still฀ being฀ asked.฀ Answers฀ are฀ generally,฀ as฀ Spencer฀ indicated฀ (2000:฀ 17),฀ to฀ be฀ found฀ within฀the฀relatively฀intimate฀space฀of฀the฀departmental฀seminar,฀where฀ negotiations฀are฀carried฀out฀over฀how฀anthropological฀or฀otherwise฀a฀ given฀topic฀or฀style฀of฀enquiry฀is.฀In฀an฀unflattering฀yet฀discerning฀review฀ of฀current฀anthropology,฀John฀Hutnyk฀(2002)฀turned฀his฀attention฀to฀the฀

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reproduction฀of฀anthropology.฀He฀highlighted฀the฀interests฀of฀those฀not฀ yet฀caught฀up฀in฀the฀ongoing฀internal฀“crisis”฀and฀made฀the฀strong฀claim฀ that฀any฀reinvention฀of฀anthropology฀that฀merely฀rehearsed฀old฀anxieties฀ about฀fieldwork,฀without฀addressing฀the฀demands฀made฀by฀students฀and฀ younger฀researchers—not฀to฀mention฀the฀political฀imperative฀to฀put฀ anthropology฀to฀work—could฀be฀treated฀only฀as฀a฀bid฀to฀sustain฀the฀ critics฀ (ourselves)฀ in฀ business.฀ That฀ means฀ keeping฀ anthropology฀ so฀ “anthropological”฀that฀it฀will฀forever฀remain฀a฀clique฀(Hutnyk฀2002:฀ 30–31).฀I฀would฀add฀that฀the฀discipline฀would฀also฀benefit฀from฀writing฀ in฀several฀different฀registers฀and฀pushing฀anthropology฀outward฀from฀ the฀academy,฀for฀intellectual฀as฀well฀as฀political฀reasons.5 A฀ broadening฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ is,฀ indeed,฀ noticeable฀ as฀ research฀ projects฀and฀new฀PhDs฀turn฀to฀ethnography฀closer฀to฀home.฀This฀is,฀I฀ hope,฀due฀not฀only฀to฀world-political฀and฀financial฀constraints฀but฀also฀ to฀intellectual฀reasons.฀Though฀not฀always฀problematized฀as฀such,฀the฀ new฀locations฀of฀study฀also฀mean฀new฀ways฀of฀(temporarily)฀positioning฀ ourselves,฀that฀is,฀of฀theorizing.

Ethnography฀and฀Persuasiveness Many฀anthropologists฀I฀know฀in฀the฀United฀Kingdom฀say฀they฀have฀too฀ little฀time฀for฀the฀work฀they฀consider฀to฀be฀most฀important.฀To฀some฀ extent,฀they฀are฀also฀nervous฀about฀a฀loss฀of฀authority.฀Contributing฀ to฀the฀recent฀debate,฀Tim฀Ingold฀(2003:฀23)฀noted฀that฀anthropologists฀ “have฀a฀huge฀way฀to฀go฀in฀training฀both฀ourselves฀and฀our฀students฀ to฀speak฀with฀conviction฀and฀authority฀on฀anthropological฀matters.”฀ Crises฀of฀representation฀and฀fears฀of฀misrepresentation฀notwithstanding,฀ for฀anthropology฀and฀anthropologists฀to฀flourish,฀this฀issue฀has฀to฀be฀ tackled.฀The฀historical฀legacy฀of฀the฀modern฀anthropologist฀studying฀the฀ nonmodern฀Other฀must฀be฀put฀to฀the฀best฀possible฀use,฀not฀carried฀along฀ as฀if฀it฀were฀the฀original฀sin฀to฀be฀confessed฀at฀suitable฀intervals. The฀authority฀of฀modern฀scientific฀knowledge฀relies฀heavily฀on฀erasing฀ its฀own฀social฀and฀interactive฀foundations.฀It฀is฀not฀surprising,฀therefore,฀ that฀the฀claims฀of฀a฀discipline฀based฀in฀ethnographic฀fieldwork฀to฀be฀ scientific฀are฀easy฀to฀challenge.฀Yet฀anthropologists฀need฀not฀acquiesce฀ in฀a฀definition฀of฀important฀or฀nontrivial฀knowledge฀that฀limits฀it฀to฀ something฀modeled฀on฀an฀idealized฀but฀inaccurate฀image฀of฀modern฀ science. That฀anthropology฀partakes฀of฀both฀science฀and฀humanities฀is฀a฀richness฀ to฀cherish฀in฀itself.฀Another฀is฀that฀anthropologists’฀commitment฀to฀ ethnographic฀methodology฀means฀that฀they฀grapple฀harder฀with฀the฀

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ethical฀and฀political฀implications฀of฀knowledge฀than฀is฀probably฀the฀case฀ in฀most฀other฀disciplines.฀Indeed,฀the฀tensions฀of฀ethnographic฀method฀ are฀already฀an฀explicit฀part฀of฀the฀anthropological฀enterprise.฀As฀I฀noted฀ earlier,฀ethnography฀promotes฀a฀kind฀of฀practical฀philosophy.฀It฀draws฀ from฀real฀people’s฀real฀preoccupations฀in฀real฀situations;฀I฀include฀in฀ this฀teaching฀and฀conference฀work,฀in฀which฀we฀learn฀about฀and฀from฀ each฀other.฀Anthropology฀and฀anthropologists,฀however,฀follow฀scripts฀ designed฀ for฀ the฀ ever-changing฀ needs฀ of฀ academic฀ institutions,฀ and฀ these฀are฀still฀modeled฀on฀modern฀criteria฀of฀scholarship฀and฀the฀value฀ judgments฀of฀our฀more฀powerful฀sponsors.฀No฀wonder฀the฀ideal฀of฀a฀ detached฀scientific฀producer฀of฀knowledge฀is฀invoked,฀and฀ethnographic฀ othering฀ reappears,฀ just฀ as฀ it฀ did฀ prior฀ to฀ the฀ publication฀ of฀ Writing฀ Culture฀(Clifford฀and฀Marcus฀1986),฀however฀uncomfortable฀we฀may฀ be฀with฀it. Increasingly,฀ anthropology฀ is฀ carried฀ out฀ in฀ situations฀ in฀ which฀ othering฀is฀not฀an฀option—for฀instance,฀if฀our฀interest฀is฀in฀scientists,฀ managers,฀or฀other฀powerful฀groups.฀In฀these฀cases฀we฀tend฀to฀adopt฀ the฀role฀of฀“documenter,”฀offering฀transcripts—edited฀ones฀for฀sure—of฀ interviews,฀rather฀than฀blatant฀objectification฀(e.g.,฀some฀the฀chapters฀ in฀Downey฀and฀Dumit฀1997).฀Our฀questioning฀makes฀our฀“informants”฀ only฀more฀self-conscious฀than฀they฀already฀were,฀and฀so฀they฀actually฀ behave฀like฀ethnographers฀of฀their฀own฀lives,฀explaining฀events฀against฀ underlying฀contexts.฀But฀if฀such฀“anthropological”฀self-consciousness฀ is฀often฀taken฀as฀typical฀of฀modernity,฀this฀does฀not฀entail฀that฀others฀ (however฀defined)฀are฀not฀also฀seeking฀to฀make฀sense฀of฀their฀collective฀ predicaments. Because฀ of฀ the฀ explicit฀ tensions฀ of฀ fieldwork,฀ the฀ anthropological฀ study฀of฀contemporary฀modernity฀at฀home฀enhances฀the฀potential฀to฀ reinvigorate,฀not฀weaken,฀anthropology.฀It฀is฀not฀so฀much฀a฀question฀ of฀ the฀ geographical฀ location฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ but฀ a฀ question฀ of฀ the฀ directions฀ in฀ which฀ we฀ take฀ our฀ intellectual฀ project.฀ For฀ everywhere฀ that฀anthropologists฀are฀studying฀modernity฀ethnographically,฀whether฀ among฀ intellectuals฀ in฀ Indonesia,฀ youth฀ workers฀ in฀ Paris,฀ museum฀ curators฀in฀Germany,฀or฀brain฀surgeons฀in฀London,฀they฀render฀modernity฀into฀specificity.฀This฀questions฀the฀assumptions฀both฀that฀modernity฀is฀homogeneity฀and฀that฀modernity฀is฀Western.฀It฀also฀shows฀up฀the฀ limitations฀of฀powerful฀if฀familiar฀knowledge฀practices. Already฀in฀the฀early฀1970s,฀Laura฀Nader฀(1974)฀advocated฀what฀she฀ called฀“studying฀up,”฀noting฀that฀it฀would฀pose฀important฀challenges.฀ The฀most฀obvious฀problems฀are฀the฀constraints฀imposed฀by฀those฀who฀ have฀power฀over฀anthropologists฀(Shore฀and฀Nugent฀2002),฀as฀well฀as฀

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the฀compromises฀made฀as฀ethnographers฀move฀into฀corporations฀(Green฀ and฀Wakeford฀2001,฀Money฀Programme฀2002).฀And฀yet฀such฀situations฀ present฀problems฀for฀all฀fieldworkers,฀whatever฀their฀research฀location.฀ Ethnographic฀process฀in฀all฀cases฀is฀shot฀through฀with฀power฀relations฀ as฀well฀as฀ethical฀dilemmas.฀The฀latter฀arise฀not฀least฀from฀the฀fact฀that฀ key฀anthropological฀knowledge฀emerges฀out฀of฀what฀is฀an฀intervention,฀ even฀an฀intrusion,฀into฀the฀lives฀of฀people฀whose฀own฀questions฀may฀ look฀nothing฀like฀those฀we฀want฀to฀pose. Although฀access฀has฀always฀posed฀a฀problem,฀anthropology฀has฀long฀ been฀done฀“at฀home.”฀Even฀more฀importantly,฀giving฀up฀pretensions฀ to฀the฀neutrality฀and฀universality฀of฀European฀modernity฀as฀a฀standard฀ of฀humanity฀is฀a฀project฀to฀which฀anthropology฀has฀contributed฀for฀ a฀ long฀ time.฀ Yet฀ anthropologists฀ have฀ been฀ reluctant฀ to฀ admit฀ their฀ debts฀ to฀ other฀ disciplines,฀ notably฀ cultural฀ and฀ media฀ studies,฀ that฀ have฀had฀an฀important฀influence฀on฀anthropologists฀who฀have฀turned฀ their฀ethnographic฀interests฀homeward.฀Certainly฀the฀locations฀for฀the฀ anthropology฀of฀modernity฀overlap฀with฀the฀locations฀of฀cultural฀and฀ media฀ studies:฀ urban฀ space฀ (Green฀ 1997),฀ public฀ spectacles฀ (Harvey฀ 1999),฀public฀institutions฀(Shore฀2000),฀and฀domestic฀interiors฀(Hirsch฀ 1998).฀In฀such฀situations,฀cultural฀studies’฀insistence฀on฀the฀political฀ nature฀of฀contemporary฀culture฀and฀the฀cultural฀nature฀of฀technology฀has฀ been฀brought฀directly฀into฀anthropological฀discourse,฀and฀the฀writings฀ of฀non-anthropologists฀such฀as฀Stuart฀Hall฀(1993)฀and฀Donna฀Haraway฀ (1997)฀have฀become฀references฀anthropology฀cannot฀do฀without. These฀writers’฀explicitly฀postcolonialist฀and฀feminist฀sensibilities฀invite฀ researchers฀to฀encounter฀their฀subject฀matter฀with฀a฀sophistication฀about฀ the฀complexity฀of฀subject฀positions฀that฀more฀traditional฀anthropology฀ was฀ able฀ to฀ sidestep.฀ The฀ us-them฀ setup฀ offered฀to฀ the฀ metropolitan฀ anthropologist฀working฀in฀the฀margins฀is฀simply฀unavailable.฀My฀own฀ work,฀first฀in฀my฀PhD฀dissertation฀on฀German฀environmental฀activists฀ and฀subsequently฀on฀environmentalists฀and฀biotechnology฀researchers฀ in฀ Finland,฀ has฀ regularly฀ drawn฀ me฀ into฀ debates฀ with฀ “informants”฀ about฀my฀relationships฀with฀them฀and฀about฀cultural฀identity฀in฀general,฀ but฀also฀about฀the฀knowledge฀I฀can฀produce฀about฀them.฀Initially,฀such฀ negotiations฀ revolve฀ around฀ ethics,฀ most฀ bluntly฀ in฀ their฀ question,฀ “Whose฀side฀are฀you฀on?”—often฀a฀pressing฀concern฀in฀environmental฀ conflicts฀as฀well฀as฀in฀concerns฀over฀science.฀Gradually,฀context฀brings฀ nuance฀to฀this฀question,฀and฀different฀commitments฀and฀demands฀are฀ negotiated,฀leading฀to฀some฀provisional฀answers฀at฀least,฀but฀constantly฀ leading฀to฀new฀domains฀of฀inquiry.฀Ethnography฀helps฀to฀make฀sense฀of฀ situations,฀but฀it฀does฀not฀explain฀anything฀to฀the฀point฀of฀emptying฀it.

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As฀my฀understanding฀of฀my฀ethnographic฀subjects’฀work฀deepens,฀ together฀with฀their฀understanding฀of฀mine,฀the฀debate฀tends฀to฀shift฀ from฀identity฀issues฀(culture)฀toward฀epistemology฀and,฀in฀some฀cases,฀ to฀accountability฀for฀knowledge฀claims.฀For฀example,฀in฀the฀tiny฀biotech฀ lab฀where฀I฀most฀recently฀conducted฀research,฀the฀power฀of฀“the”฀market฀ is฀a฀constant฀presence฀in฀discussions.฀Its฀specter฀looms฀over฀the฀future฀ prospects฀of฀the฀lab฀itself฀with฀each฀new฀budget฀and฀each฀proposal฀for฀ research฀funds.฀Lab฀workers฀have฀not฀(yet)฀asked฀me฀how฀I฀intend฀to฀ represent฀the฀lab฀in฀relation฀to฀the฀market,฀but฀they฀are฀concerned฀that฀ I฀understand฀the฀complex฀economic฀and฀power฀relations฀within฀which฀ they,฀living฀in฀a฀remote฀part฀of฀Finland,฀find฀themselves.฀I,฀a฀researcher฀ identified฀ with฀ the฀ capital฀ city฀ and฀ with฀ an฀ academic฀ affiliation฀ in฀ London,฀have฀powers฀they฀do฀not,฀and฀they฀negotiate฀their฀relationship฀ to฀me฀with฀care.฀Identity฀then฀becomes฀a฀question฀of฀how฀our฀relationship฀ is฀mediated.฀Identity฀also฀accrues฀to฀the฀knowledge฀we฀produce.฀From฀ their฀ professional฀ perspective,฀ anthropological฀ knowledge฀ seems฀ to฀ be฀ interesting฀ and฀ worthwhile,฀ though฀ its฀ uses฀ are฀ not฀ immediately฀ obvious.฀There฀may฀not฀be฀symmetry฀between฀the฀values฀placed฀on฀ biochemistry฀and฀anthropology,฀but฀the฀encounter฀produces฀moments฀ of฀mutual฀interrogation฀as฀well฀as฀recognition฀and฀respect. What฀I฀am฀suggesting฀is฀that฀one฀of฀the฀unique฀strengths฀of฀ethnographic฀method฀is—or฀could฀be—its฀dialogue฀with฀“informants,”฀whoever฀ the฀anthropologist฀is฀and฀whoever฀the฀people฀being฀studied฀are.฀The฀ encounter฀ensures฀that฀whether฀acknowledged฀or฀not,฀anthropological฀ exegesis฀ proceeds฀ from฀ an฀ “ethnographic฀ moment,”฀ one฀ of฀ overlap฀ between฀the฀field฀out฀there฀(the฀lives฀of฀“informants”)฀and฀the฀field฀ over฀ here฀ (academic฀ discourse),฀ and฀ thus฀ is฀ always฀ in฀ debt฀ to฀ forms฀ of฀ native฀ exegesis฀ (Berglund฀ 2001;฀ Strathern฀ 1988,฀ 1999a,฀ 1999b).฀ Despite฀this,฀it฀seems฀there฀has฀been฀a฀fudge฀in฀the฀history฀of฀AngloAmerican฀anthropology.฀In฀the฀very฀act฀of฀making฀its฀object,฀and฀thus฀ of฀legitimating฀its฀specificity,฀anthropology฀hid฀from฀itself฀the฀source฀ of฀some฀of฀its฀more฀creative฀impulses:฀the฀voices฀and฀questions฀of฀the฀ people฀it฀used฀to฀call฀informants. It฀is฀the฀resolutely฀contextual฀practice฀of฀ethnography฀that฀provides฀ grounds฀on฀which฀to฀resist฀“grand฀narratives,”฀but฀it฀also฀gives฀us฀room฀ to฀document฀and฀analyze฀without฀taking฀sides฀or฀moralizing.฀Parenthetically฀speaking,฀since฀the฀launching฀of฀the฀so-called฀war฀on฀terrorism,฀ an฀ added฀ urgency฀ has฀ characterized฀ anthropological฀ questioning฀ of฀ how฀cultural฀difference฀is฀organized.฀We฀have฀tools฀for฀narrating฀and฀ analyzing฀“terrorism”฀or฀the฀invasion฀of฀Iraq฀that฀was฀being฀prepared฀ even฀as฀we฀discussed฀these฀issues฀at฀the฀symposium.฀In฀lecture฀halls,฀

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for฀instance,฀we฀have฀plenty฀with฀which฀to฀work฀within฀a฀conventional฀ anthropological฀tradition,฀not฀least฀the฀knowledge฀that฀in฀the฀places฀ where฀ many฀ of฀ us฀ study,฀ inexplicable฀ disasters฀ are฀ common,฀ or฀ the฀ insight฀ that฀ electronic฀ media฀ are฀ extraordinarily฀ powerful฀ political฀ tools. Despite฀ the฀ fact฀ that฀ anthropologists฀ know฀ that฀ modernity฀ is฀ not฀ confined฀to,฀or฀even฀really฀born฀of,฀the฀West,฀and฀despite฀decades฀of฀ postcolonial฀theory,฀even฀in฀anthropology฀dualistic฀thinking฀still฀pits฀ modernity฀against฀indigeneity,฀science฀against฀tradition.฀Yet฀the฀authors฀ of฀ethnographic฀studies฀of฀technoscience,฀not฀to฀mention฀critiques฀of฀ the฀discipline,฀cogently฀argue฀that฀European-style฀“great฀divides”฀(see฀ Latour฀1993)฀are฀not฀necessary฀to฀the฀task฀of฀maintaining฀intellectual฀ order฀or฀technical฀effectiveness.฀If฀our฀intellectual฀as฀well฀as฀our฀moral฀ impulse฀is฀to฀treat฀as฀our฀concern฀all฀human฀relationships,฀and฀if฀our฀ method฀is฀to฀engage฀with฀people฀as฀capable฀(as฀humans฀are)฀of฀narrating฀ their฀own฀predicaments,฀then฀“great฀divides”฀are฀of฀more฀interest฀to฀us฀ as฀symbolic฀constructs฀than฀as฀analytical฀aids.฀And฀ethnographically฀ speaking,฀ we฀ know฀ that฀ the฀ modern฀ West฀ is฀ neither฀ standard฀ nor฀ uninteresting. The฀complexity฀of฀the฀relationship฀between฀culture฀and฀economics฀ in฀the฀neocolonial฀world฀suggests฀that฀one฀of฀our฀tasks฀is฀to฀reassess฀ what฀it฀might฀mean฀to฀produce฀nontrivial฀knowledge฀of฀culture฀and฀ society.฀Another฀is฀to฀communicate฀to฀non–social฀scientists฀that฀there฀ is฀nothing฀mere฀or฀trivial฀about฀culture฀or฀context.฀True,฀the฀nontrivial฀ is฀still฀generally฀equated฀with฀the฀universal,฀and฀increasingly฀with฀the฀ calculable,฀ a฀ view฀ that฀ carries฀ substantial฀ authority฀ in฀ many฀ places฀ where฀anthropologists฀want฀to฀have฀influence. The฀analysis฀of฀modernity฀in฀all฀its฀forms,฀however,฀gives฀anthropology฀an฀opportunity฀to฀demonstrate฀that฀universality฀and฀objectivity฀ are฀themselves฀historically฀specific฀values.฀We฀can฀even฀demonstrate฀ that฀natural฀science฀and฀other฀nontrivial฀knowledge฀bends฀according฀to฀ the฀needs฀of฀politico-economic฀power฀(e.g.,฀Martin฀1994),฀but฀also฀that฀ there฀are฀limits฀to฀such฀excesses.฀Alongside฀the฀apparent฀fixity฀of฀modern฀ knowledge,฀modernity฀and฀the฀West/North,฀including฀anthropology฀ itself,฀also฀operate฀within฀a฀more฀general฀Western฀framework,฀namely,฀ constructionist฀understandings฀of฀knowledge.฀Not฀only฀anthropology฀ but฀ also฀ a฀ whole฀ range฀ of฀ other฀ discourses฀ increasingly฀ account฀ for฀ context/nature/science฀by฀ever฀further฀construction,฀as฀Marilyn฀Strathern฀ persuasively฀argued฀in฀After฀Nature฀(1992).฀This฀precipitates฀a฀generalized฀ crisis,฀ because฀ if฀ nature฀ is฀ treated฀ as฀ culturally฀ constructed,฀ then฀ it฀ seems฀to฀leave฀nothing฀solid฀enough฀to฀ground฀an฀argument.฀This฀is฀an฀

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uncomfortable฀predicament฀for฀everyone.฀Here฀I฀am฀concerned฀with฀its฀ implications฀for฀anthropologists฀who฀might฀want฀to฀discriminate,฀if฀not฀ adjudicate,฀between฀health฀and฀pathology,฀human฀or฀environmental.฀ Put฀differently,฀in฀a฀crisis-ridden฀world฀(singular),฀studying฀“worlds”฀ (e.g.,฀Augé฀1999)฀would฀seem฀to฀be฀a฀relativizing฀indulgence฀only฀the฀ privileged฀can฀afford.

Anthropologizing฀Ourselves Penny฀ Harvey’s฀ ethnography฀ of฀ Seville’s฀ 1992฀ Universal฀ Exhibition฀ (Harvey฀ 1996,฀ 1999)฀ shows฀ how฀ playing฀ with฀ worlds฀ can฀ become฀ a฀ pastime.฀ It฀ also฀ traces฀ the฀ ways฀ in฀ which฀ modern฀ habits฀ of฀ thought฀ have฀been฀changing฀and฀staying฀the฀same: [I]n฀its฀late฀twentieth-century฀guise฀this฀universal฀fair฀distinguished฀itself฀ from฀the฀fairs฀of฀the฀previous฀century฀in฀the฀degree฀to฀which฀it฀exhibited฀ an฀ awareness฀ of฀ itself,฀ of฀ its฀ own฀ history฀ and฀ its฀ own฀ artifice.฀ The฀ exhibitors฀mused฀on฀the฀nature฀of฀modernity฀and฀explicitly฀addressed฀ the฀ central฀ issues฀ in฀ sociological฀ debates฀ about฀ globalisation฀ such฀ as:฀ multiculturalism฀and฀the฀plural฀nature฀of฀society,฀the฀links฀between฀the฀ global฀ and฀ the฀ local,฀ the฀ temporal฀ and฀ the฀ universal,฀ the฀ ironic฀ play฀ with฀ similarity฀ and฀ difference,฀ the฀ familiar฀ and฀ the฀ strange,฀ the฀ traditional฀ and฀ the฀ modern,฀ uniqueness฀ and฀ wholeness,฀ discontinuity฀ and฀ continuity฀(1999:฀225).

Visitors฀ to฀ the฀ exhibition,฀ with฀ their฀ self-consciousness฀ and฀ their฀ ethnographic฀sensibilities,฀were฀not฀unlike฀professional฀anthropologists.฀ But฀they฀were฀not฀contemplating฀similarity฀and฀difference฀as฀resources฀ for฀an฀academic฀pursuit,฀operating฀simultaneously฀at฀several฀levels฀of฀ analysis,฀or฀paying฀scholarly฀attention฀to฀the฀contexts฀of฀power฀within฀ which฀their฀activities฀unfolded.฀These฀things฀are฀all฀required฀of฀good฀ ethnography,฀a฀word฀that฀refers฀less฀and฀less฀to฀fieldwork฀method฀or฀ even฀to฀a฀resulting฀text฀and฀more฀to฀a฀methodology฀(Berglund฀2001),฀ a฀ mode฀ of฀ questioning฀ rather฀ than฀ a฀ method฀ for฀ gleaning฀ answers.6฀ Ethnography฀today฀incorporates฀personal฀experience฀and฀long-term,฀ in-depth฀fieldwork,฀but฀also฀discourse฀analysis,฀media฀analysis,฀surveys฀ of฀ government฀ documents,฀ and,฀ increasingly,฀ dialogue฀ with฀ experts฀ in฀ fields฀ as฀ distant฀ (or฀ as฀ close)฀ as฀ business฀ management,฀ medicine,฀ engineering,฀ science,฀ and฀ art,฀ and฀ of฀ course฀ dialogue฀ with฀ students฀ and฀peers.

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While฀culture฀and฀difference฀take฀on฀new฀meanings฀outside฀the฀academy,฀ they฀ operate฀ within฀ the฀ academy,฀ too.฀ So฀ let฀ me฀ return฀ to฀ the฀ preoccupations฀with฀which฀I฀began,฀those฀concerning฀anthropologists’฀ experiences฀of฀disciplinary฀transformations฀within฀systems฀of฀power.฀ A฀volume฀published฀in฀2000฀called฀Audit฀Cultures,฀edited฀by฀Marilyn฀ Strathern,฀turns฀its฀anthropological฀attention฀to฀precisely฀these฀issues.7 Audit฀ Cultures฀ was฀ the฀ product฀ of฀ the฀ conference฀ of฀ the฀ European฀ Association฀of฀Social฀Anthropologists฀held฀in฀Frankfurt฀in฀1998,฀and฀ so฀it฀reflects฀the฀concerns฀of฀professional฀anthropologists฀beyond฀the฀ United฀ Kingdom.฀ When฀ its฀ contributors฀ wrote฀ about฀ administrative฀ organizations,฀ which฀ writers฀ often฀ render฀ faceless฀ and฀ soulless฀ and฀ juxtapose฀against฀the฀lively฀cultural฀features฀of฀other฀arenas฀of฀human฀ action,฀they฀brought฀them฀to฀life฀with฀faces฀and฀actions.฀Their฀empirical฀ details฀revealed฀many฀similarities฀in฀administrative฀procedures฀across฀ national฀and฀institutional฀contexts฀(a฀point฀raised฀frequently฀during฀ the฀Wenner-Gren฀symposium). At฀the฀same฀time,฀we฀learn฀that฀transformations฀in฀administrative฀ organizations฀are฀inflected฀through฀different฀conditions฀that฀cannot฀ be฀reduced฀to฀blanket฀conceptions฀of฀modernity฀as฀simply฀global฀or,฀ indeed,฀of฀modernization฀itself.฀Without฀the฀empirical฀element฀that฀ connects฀ the฀ micro฀ with฀ the฀ macro,฀ the฀ collection฀ would฀ be฀ less฀ compelling,฀and฀the฀argument฀that฀small฀changes฀matter฀in฀the฀long฀ run,฀less฀persuasive.฀We฀learn฀that฀“like฀institutional฀clients฀elsewhere,฀ scholars฀have฀helped฀to฀reproduce฀the฀bureaucracies฀they฀fear”฀(Amit฀ 2000:฀230).฀We฀also฀learn฀that฀universities฀everywhere฀are฀increasingly฀ cast฀as฀producers฀of฀literal฀exchange฀value,฀or฀at฀least฀as฀the฀sources฀of฀ fuel฀to฀power฀the฀industries฀of฀the฀information฀society.฀Although฀I฀do฀ not฀read฀the฀volume฀as฀a฀whole฀as฀being฀naïve฀about฀the฀long฀history฀ of฀the฀academy’s฀relationship฀to฀capitalism฀(including฀state-socialism฀ capitalism),฀ its฀ chapters฀ nevertheless฀ identify฀ something฀ specifically฀ new฀and฀worth฀exploring฀in฀the฀way฀commerce,฀state,฀and฀academy฀ articulate. The฀rhetorical฀force฀of฀the฀contributions฀is฀no฀doubt฀heightened฀by฀ their฀juxtaposing—implicitly฀if฀not฀explicitly—“their”฀mythico-ritual฀ world฀with฀“our”฀rational-technical฀one.฀“They,”฀however,฀are฀not฀just฀ evil฀bureaucrats฀(let฀alone฀primitives)฀but฀people฀very฀much฀like฀“us.”฀ The฀contributors฀demonstrate฀that฀to฀anthropologize฀the฀modern฀is฀to฀ relativize฀it,฀to฀make฀it฀impossible฀to฀measure฀difference฀as฀deviation฀ from฀a฀standard—which฀is฀modernity฀itself.฀This฀does฀not฀mean,฀though,฀ that฀difference฀and฀specificity฀(peculiarity)฀are฀erased฀or฀aestheticized฀in฀ the฀way฀I฀suggested฀has฀been฀the฀fate฀of฀culture—quite฀the฀opposite.

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The฀audit,฀for฀instance,฀is฀presented฀as฀an฀important฀ritual.฀It฀is฀repetitive฀and฀often฀incomprehensible฀to฀its฀congregation,฀and฀yet฀it฀is฀ transformative฀ and฀ efficacious.฀ Most฀ bluntly,฀ it฀ can฀ turn฀ numerical฀ representations฀into฀tangible฀realities—for฀instance,฀into฀the฀allocation฀ of฀resources.฀An฀audit,฀instantiated฀in฀the฀Research฀Assessment฀Exercise,฀ for฀example,฀also฀revises฀people’s฀understandings฀of฀what฀knowledge฀ might฀be฀and฀of฀who฀can฀use฀it.฀The฀rituals฀of฀audit฀and฀accountability฀ also฀make฀and฀break฀communities,฀enabling฀and฀constraining฀individuals฀ in฀their฀efforts฀to฀occupy฀certain฀positions.฀They฀tend฀to฀homogenize฀ academic฀projects,฀now฀constrained฀by฀narrow฀and฀utilitarian฀definitions฀ of฀what฀is฀worthwhile. The฀contributors฀to฀Audit฀Cultures฀play฀with฀context฀and฀perspective,฀ foregrounding฀specific฀relationships.฀They฀demonstrate฀once฀again฀a฀ methodological฀point฀that฀Strathern฀has฀considered฀elsewhere—that฀ “anthropologists฀ are฀ adept฀ at฀ dividing฀ the฀ world฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ create฀ fresh฀explanatory฀contexts฀for฀relationships”฀(Strathern฀1995:฀166).฀By฀ doing฀so฀we฀may,฀as฀Strathern฀implies,฀be฀intensifying฀debates฀internal฀ to฀anthropology฀that฀leave฀others฀unmoved.฀On฀the฀other฀hand,฀such฀ an฀ exercise฀ does฀ provide฀ a฀ way฀ to฀ challenge฀ the฀ “metropolitan฀ provincialism”฀(to฀borrow฀an฀apt฀phrase฀from฀the฀editors฀of฀this฀volume)฀ that฀ claims฀ its฀ own฀ totalizing฀ vision฀ as฀ universal.฀ The฀ exercise฀ also฀ encourages฀anthropologists฀to฀make฀relationships฀appear฀in฀which฀they฀ themselves฀are฀accountable.฀That฀is,฀ethnography,฀like฀it฀or฀not,฀puts฀ us฀ all฀ into฀ networks฀ of฀ accountability฀ as฀ people,฀ wherever฀ the฀ field฀ may฀be. Audit฀Cultures฀resonates฀with฀technoscience฀in฀Finland฀and฀above฀all฀ with฀my฀experiences฀of฀British฀academia,฀both฀of฀which฀pursuits฀are฀ preoccupied฀with฀productivism฀but฀also฀identity.฀The฀volume฀goes฀beyond฀ a฀critique฀of฀a฀generalized฀modernity;฀it฀takes฀to฀task฀the฀assumptions฀ of฀virtue฀built฀into฀anthropology฀itself,฀as฀well฀as฀the฀impotence฀with฀ which฀academics฀have฀generally฀responded฀to฀demands฀for฀financial฀ accountability.฀It฀invites฀a฀self-critical฀reading฀because฀it฀acknowledges฀ that฀academics฀often฀experience฀demands฀for฀accountability฀as฀vitalizing฀ and,฀at฀the฀same฀time,฀potentially฀destructive. It฀might฀be฀suggestive฀to฀compare฀the฀approach฀taken฀by฀contributors฀ to฀Audit฀Cultures฀with฀recent฀work฀in฀sociology,฀another฀discipline฀apparently฀in฀crisis฀(e.g.,฀Beck฀2000).฀Sociology฀increasingly฀offers฀a฀vision฀of฀ a฀world฀that฀is฀unmanageable฀because฀of฀its฀global฀scale฀and฀because฀it฀ is฀constituted฀as฀an฀amalgam฀of฀individuals฀or,฀at฀best,฀networks,฀society฀ having฀been฀proclaimed฀dead฀by฀Britain’s฀Margaret฀Thatcher฀herself.฀ The฀universe฀that฀social฀thinkers฀are฀asked฀to฀deal฀with฀is฀fragmented,฀

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as฀opposed฀to฀consisting฀of฀“society”฀or฀“societies,”฀and฀is฀horizontally฀ and฀flexibly฀networked,฀as฀opposed฀to฀being฀vertically฀integrated.฀This฀ requires฀a฀response฀from฀the฀social฀sciences.฀One฀good฀response฀is฀to฀“do฀ anthropology,”฀insisting฀on฀realities฀that฀are฀based฀in฀human฀relations฀ rather฀than฀in฀Eurocentric฀“grand฀narratives”฀and฀their฀crises:฀“the฀end฀ of฀history,”฀“society฀is฀dead,”฀and฀so฀on. A฀key฀insight฀presented฀in฀another฀of฀Strathern’s฀books,฀After฀Nature:฀ English฀Kinship฀in฀the฀Late฀Twentieth฀Century฀(1992),฀was฀that฀treating฀ context฀as฀grounds฀for฀knowledge,฀including฀knowledge฀of฀nature฀and฀ science,฀ precipitates฀ epistemological฀ and฀ political฀ crises.฀ We฀ know฀ that฀European฀modernity฀has฀bequeathed฀an฀obsession—namely,฀the฀ requirement฀that฀inside฀and฀outside฀(for฀example,฀of฀a฀society)฀be฀clearly฀ separated.฀In฀the฀constructionist฀view฀of฀knowledge,฀in฀which฀context฀ provides฀explanation,฀if฀“the฀global”฀(as฀in฀global฀culture)฀or,฀indeed,฀ “the฀world”฀(world฀markets)฀is฀the฀object฀of฀analysis,฀then฀there฀is฀no฀ candidate฀for฀the฀context฀that฀provides฀the฀(back)ground,฀that฀is,฀the฀ explanatory฀context.฀After฀all,฀what฀is฀more฀global,฀more฀encompassing,฀ than฀ the฀ world,฀ or฀ even฀ the฀ global฀ economic฀ environment?฀ Does฀ society฀really฀construct฀nature?฀Does฀culture?฀Does฀globalization฀kill฀ anthropology? The฀ answer฀ to฀ the฀ last฀ three฀ questions฀ is฀ no,฀ but฀ the฀ point฀ is฀ that฀ an฀ethnography-anthropology฀that฀can฀accommodate฀a฀focus฀on฀the฀ contemporary฀modern฀would฀not฀pose฀them฀in฀the฀first฀place.฀Such฀ questions฀could,฀however,฀arise฀out฀of฀imperialist฀anthropology,฀because฀ “a”฀(primitive)฀society฀could฀be฀imagined฀as฀a฀world฀unto฀itself,฀one฀ that฀ethnography฀might฀capture฀holistically.฀Modernity,฀on฀the฀other฀ hand,฀was฀always฀too฀“complex”฀even฀to฀offer฀the฀possibility฀of฀being฀ grasped฀holistically.฀We฀strive฀to฀make฀it฀more฀manageable฀by฀treating฀ only฀a฀part฀of฀it,฀an฀aspect฀of฀its฀complexity.฀Thus,฀it฀is฀not฀society฀or฀ culture฀as฀such฀but฀“ethics,฀audit,฀policy”฀that฀increasingly฀are฀taken฀ to฀be฀“the฀places฀to฀be฀looking฀these฀days฀if฀one฀is฀looking฀for฀society”฀ (Strathern฀2000:฀282).฀Ethics,฀audit,฀and฀policy฀are฀domains฀that฀we฀ can฀name฀and฀that฀enable฀us฀to฀trace฀networks฀that฀effect฀change฀and฀ mediate฀power.฀Questions฀must฀be฀asked฀about฀how฀they฀do฀so,฀and฀ with฀ what฀ consequences.฀ In฀ doing฀ so,฀ ethnographers฀ are฀ inevitably฀ caught฀up฀in฀relationships฀of฀accountability฀that฀inform฀what฀they฀can฀ ask฀and฀how฀they฀represent. One฀of฀the฀principles฀that฀guides฀work฀on฀European฀modernity฀such฀as฀ Audit฀Cultures฀is฀that฀it฀is฀unnecessary฀to฀discriminate฀between฀complex฀ and฀simple฀social฀systems฀(Harvey฀1996).฀Whatever฀complexity฀inheres฀ in฀anthropological฀work฀is฀in฀the฀analysis;฀home฀and฀away฀are฀as฀simple฀

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or฀ as฀ complex฀ as฀ one’s฀ questioning฀ allows.฀ And฀ so,฀ in฀ ethnographic฀ perspective,฀ anthropologizing฀ is฀ not฀ at฀ all฀ about฀ contextualizing฀ to฀ the฀point฀of฀making฀reality฀vanish.฀It฀is฀more฀about฀different฀ways฀of฀ making฀power฀visible.฀It฀is฀also฀about฀giving฀us฀the฀confidence,฀first,฀ that฀social฀power฀can฀be฀analyzed฀and,฀second,฀that฀we฀do฀not฀have฀ to฀idealize฀scientific฀method฀as฀a฀unitary฀language฀from฀which฀social฀ scientists฀are฀unhappily฀excluded. Michel฀Foucault’s฀work฀continues฀to฀inspire฀such฀projects,฀but฀more฀ specifically฀I฀would฀note฀the฀influence฀of฀Bruno฀Latour฀and฀Marilyn฀ Strathern.฀Their฀contributions฀to฀analyzing฀Euro-American฀knowledge฀ practices฀provide฀good฀models฀for฀anthropologizing฀modernity.฀Constructionist฀ arguments฀ regarding฀ knowledge฀ and฀ power฀ in฀ domains฀ where฀constructionism฀used฀not฀to฀apply—specifically,฀technoscience— resonate฀ and฀ so฀ help฀ to฀ provide฀ new฀ understandings฀ across฀ a฀ broad฀ range฀of฀situations,฀from฀the฀uses฀of฀information฀technology฀(Green฀and฀ Harvey฀1999)฀to฀environmentalism฀(Berglund฀1998)฀and฀the฀creation฀ of฀the฀European฀Union฀(Shore฀2000).฀Importantly,฀such฀contributions฀ interrogate฀the฀criteria฀by฀which฀they฀themselves฀might฀be฀judged,฀but฀ the฀authors฀do฀not฀let฀that฀stop฀them฀from฀trying฀to฀be฀persuasive.฀Truth฀ claims฀may฀be฀culturally฀specific,฀but฀nowhere฀are฀they฀insignificant.฀ Also,฀in฀the฀supposedly฀modern฀West,฀they฀are฀certainly฀undergoing฀ change฀(see฀the฀previously฀quoted฀passage฀from฀Harvey฀1999). In฀the฀contemporary฀world,฀seeing฀is฀no฀longer฀believing.฀Harvey’s฀ ethnography฀of฀the฀Seville฀Expo฀demonstrates฀the฀continuing฀impulse฀ in฀European฀modernity฀to฀treat฀knowledge฀as฀image฀(1996:฀161).฀This,฀ too,฀exacerbates฀the฀crisis฀unleashed฀by฀“too฀much”฀constructionism,฀ because฀ it฀ risks฀ turning฀ knowledge฀ into฀ opinion.฀ Where฀ images฀ are฀ treated฀as฀representations฀of฀something฀else,฀they฀are฀always฀slightly฀ inaccurate฀and฀partial.฀Yet฀European฀modernity,฀Harvey฀seems฀to฀suggest,฀ provokes฀less฀worry฀over฀representation฀than฀before.฀Events฀such฀as฀the฀ Seville฀Expo฀confront฀visitors฀and฀analysts฀alike฀with฀culture฀as฀image฀ only.฀The฀context฀for฀new฀knowledge฀is,฀then,฀not฀nature฀or฀ground฀but฀ more฀culture—for฀instance,฀in฀a฀high-tech฀interactive฀display฀of฀Spanish฀ history฀(Harvey฀1996:฀151),฀where฀people฀are฀moved฀by฀difference฀that฀ is฀visible.฀And฀what฀moves฀people฀has฀to฀be฀real,฀even฀if฀it฀is฀virtual. Reflecting฀on฀which฀realities฀move฀people฀and฀how฀societies฀judge฀ knowledge฀ claims,฀ we฀ know฀ that฀ the฀ modern฀ categories฀ of฀ thought฀ that฀ used฀ to฀ legitimate฀ claims฀ to฀ nontrivial฀ knowledge฀ still฀ operate฀ in฀some฀institutions—notably฀those฀committed฀to฀modernization฀of฀ one฀ kind฀ or฀ other.฀ We฀ also฀ know฀ that฀ in฀ many฀ places฀ the฀ power฀ of฀ dualistic฀thought฀is฀diminished฀or฀superseded.฀Nevertheless,฀we฀cannot฀

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ignore฀the฀significance฀of฀profits฀in฀the฀way฀triviality฀and฀importance฀are฀ currently฀judged.฀And฀yet฀the฀ethnographic฀enterprise,฀whether฀carried฀ out฀in฀situations฀of฀extreme฀inequality฀or฀not,฀constantly฀brings฀to฀the฀ fore฀the฀impoverishment฀that฀such฀a฀conceptualization฀brings฀about.฀As฀ Penny฀Harvey฀(personal฀communication)฀put฀it,฀anthropology฀is฀geared฀ less฀toward฀knowing฀more฀than฀toward฀knowing฀otherwise,฀something฀ that฀our฀quantity-obsessed฀world฀desperately฀needs฀to฀recognize. Thus,฀as฀anthropology฀seeks฀a฀viable฀role,฀it฀must฀have฀the฀conviction฀ of฀its฀own฀principle฀that฀although฀ethnographic฀knowledge฀is฀irreducible฀ to฀calculation,฀it฀is฀nontrivial.฀Ethnographic฀dialogue฀means฀that฀culture฀ and฀society,฀and฀their฀meanings,฀are฀themselves฀treated฀as฀dynamic,฀as฀ well฀as฀specific฀to฀particular฀social฀forms฀and฀cultural฀norms.฀Indeed,฀ anthropologists฀over฀the฀decades฀have฀argued฀that฀mechanisms฀for฀being฀ persuasive,฀nontrivial,฀or฀even฀real฀are฀hardly฀universal.฀At฀the฀same฀ time,฀they฀have฀discovered฀that฀such฀mechanisms฀are฀also฀a฀necessary฀ part฀of฀being฀human,฀as฀is฀existing฀in฀relations฀of฀power. Experiences฀ in฀ the฀ academy฀ suggest฀ that฀ the฀ more฀ we฀ have฀ tried฀ to฀be฀persuasive฀by฀adapting฀to฀hegemonic฀economic฀credentials฀and฀ their฀often฀numeric฀indicators,฀the฀less฀we฀have฀of฀something฀we฀might฀ consider฀distinctive฀or฀productive.฀Although฀anthropologists,฀too,฀have฀ submitted฀ to฀ an฀ ideology฀ that฀ pretends฀ to฀ value฀ only฀ demonstrable฀ improvement฀in฀results฀rather฀than฀passion฀or฀dialogue,฀we฀know฀the฀ significance฀of฀the฀university,฀and฀our฀scholarship฀is฀not฀only฀that฀which฀ is฀accessible฀to฀administrative฀scrutiny. My฀personal฀career฀decisions฀notwithstanding,฀I฀believe฀anthropological฀research,฀wherever฀its฀primary฀focus,฀provides฀precious฀tools฀for฀ expanding฀experience฀and฀making฀sense฀of฀the฀chaos฀around฀us.฀I฀muse฀ on฀the฀possible฀implications฀for฀world฀anthropologies.฀Need฀anthropologists฀cease฀to฀be฀anthropologists฀once฀they฀resign฀their฀posts?฀Could฀ anthropology฀be฀strengthened฀if฀the฀policing฀of฀disciplinary฀boundaries฀ within฀ the฀ anthropological฀ community฀ were฀ treated฀ with฀ the฀ same฀ disdain฀as฀the฀policing฀of฀ethnic฀boundaries฀beyond฀it?฀And฀further,฀ does฀anthropological฀knowledge฀not฀already฀refuse฀the฀modern฀conceit฀ that฀knowledge฀that฀cannot฀be฀represented฀and฀fixed฀is฀trivial?฀If฀we฀ insist฀on฀the฀nontriviality฀of฀such฀forms฀of฀knowledge,฀we฀are฀already฀ operating฀against฀hegemonic฀leveling฀devices—numbers฀and,฀as฀I฀have฀ emphasized,฀culture฀as฀difference.

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Notes Thanks฀ to฀ Emma฀ Tarlo,฀ Adam฀ Reed,฀ Mitchell฀ Sedgwick,฀ Penny฀ Harvey,฀ and฀ Pat฀Caplan฀(all฀of฀whom฀said฀very฀different,฀often฀contradictory฀things)฀and฀ to฀the฀wonderful฀participants฀in฀the฀Wenner-Gren฀symposium.฀The฀views฀and฀ analyses฀on฀these฀pages฀remain฀my฀own. 1.฀ The฀grant-giving฀state฀body,฀the฀earlier฀Social฀Science฀Research฀Council,฀ established฀in฀1965,฀was฀transformed฀into฀the฀ESRC,฀the฀Economic฀and฀Social฀ Research฀ Council,฀ in฀ 1983.฀ It฀ was฀ so฀ named฀ in฀ consequence฀ of฀ the฀ government’s฀suspicions฀over฀the฀scientific฀credentials฀of฀social฀research—not฀science฀ but฀research.฀It฀also฀highlighted฀economic฀research฀as฀the฀key฀social฀science.฀ From฀the฀inception฀of฀the฀ESRC,฀funding฀for฀research฀students฀was฀curtailed฀ (Spencer฀2000:฀11). 2.฀ I฀can฀speak฀only฀from฀personal฀experiences฀and฀anecdotes,฀but฀I฀have฀in฀ mind฀two฀of฀the฀country’s฀outstanding฀departments,฀those฀at฀Cambridge฀and฀ the฀London฀School฀of฀Economics. 3.฀ Birmingham’s฀Department฀of฀Cultural฀Studies฀and฀Sociology,฀the฀direct฀ institutional฀outcome฀of฀this฀now฀famous฀research,฀was฀forced฀to฀close฀down฀ in฀ the฀ summer฀ of฀ 2002,฀ leaving฀ staff฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ students฀ to฀ seek฀ academic฀ homes฀in฀other฀departments. 4.฀ Michael฀Herzfeld,฀in฀his฀innovative฀and฀collaborative฀book฀Anthropology:฀ Theoretical฀Practice฀in฀Culture฀and฀Society฀(2001),฀has฀even฀called฀anthropology฀ a฀practice฀of฀theory. 5.฀ Further,฀what฀counts฀as฀academic฀work฀should฀include฀much฀that฀is฀not฀ peer-reviewed฀articles฀or฀monographs,฀an฀argument฀recently฀made฀by฀many฀ non-anthropologists฀ involved฀ in฀ fieldwork,฀ activism,฀ or฀ both฀ (e.g.,฀ Mountz฀ 2002). 6.฀ We฀cannot฀afford,฀however,฀to฀ignore฀the฀fact฀that฀for฀those฀such฀as฀the฀ market฀researchers฀recently฀enthralled฀by฀it฀(Money฀Programme฀2002),฀ethnographic฀research฀equates฀with฀following฀people฀around. 7.฀ Strathern฀discussed฀these฀issues฀in฀her฀1997฀article,฀“‘Improving฀Ratings’:฀ Audit฀in฀the฀British฀University฀System,”฀as฀well.

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The Production of Other Knowledges and Its Tensions From Andeanist Anthropology to Interculturalidad?

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n฀a฀recent฀volume,฀the฀anthropologist-politician฀Carlos฀Iván฀Degregori฀ (2000)฀described฀anthropologists฀in฀Peru,฀his฀country฀and฀mine,฀as฀ having฀developed฀an฀inward-looking฀analytical฀viewpoint฀that฀lacked฀ comparative฀perspective.฀This฀situation,฀he฀explained,฀contrasted฀with฀ that฀in฀the฀Northern฀Hemisphere,฀where฀access฀to฀bibliographic฀and฀ funding฀resources฀provided฀scholars฀with฀a฀broader฀view฀that,฀nonetheless,฀ featured฀ an฀ inward-looking฀ tradition฀ of฀ its฀ own.฀ Although฀ resources฀ allowed฀them฀to฀compare฀and฀contrast฀anthropological฀knowledge฀about฀ Andean฀countries,฀they฀generally฀did฀so฀with฀information฀published฀ in฀English,฀mostly฀by฀US฀scholars.฀As฀an฀example฀of฀this฀parochialism฀ (which,฀however,฀is฀not฀generally฀considered฀such,฀given฀the฀authority฀ of฀North฀America฀as฀an฀academic฀center),฀he฀mentioned฀an฀article฀by฀ a฀US฀colleague฀devoted฀to฀an฀assessment฀of฀Andean฀anthropology฀in฀ which฀“out฀of฀sixty-two฀titles฀mentioned฀in฀the฀bibliography,฀only฀two฀ are฀by฀Peruvian฀scholars,฀and฀one฀of฀them฀is฀in฀English,฀and฀written฀ by฀a฀Peruvian฀woman฀teaching฀in฀the฀US.”฀Yet฀suggesting฀the฀complex฀ geopolitics฀of฀knowledge-power฀relations,฀Degregori฀admitted฀that฀his฀ own฀ review฀ of฀ Peruvian฀ anthropology฀ excluded,฀ or฀ at฀ the฀ very฀ least฀ subordinated,฀knowledge฀produced฀in฀provincial฀universities฀(Degregori฀ 2000:฀17–18). The฀hegemony฀of฀Euro-American฀academic฀anthropology฀emerges฀ from฀ apparently฀ innocuous฀ disciplinary฀ interactions.฀ As฀ Degregori’s฀ self-criticism฀alerts฀us,฀even฀critical฀dispositions฀may฀prove฀insufficient฀ 201

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to฀shelter฀us฀from฀this฀hegemony;฀we฀need,฀at฀the฀very฀least,฀to฀disrupt฀ the฀ silence฀ in฀ which฀ it฀ thrives.฀ Universal฀ in฀ appearance,฀ Western฀ forms฀ of฀ knowledge฀ and฀ their฀ practices฀ are฀ not฀ confined฀ to฀ Europe฀ or฀the฀United฀States—they฀have฀exceeded฀those฀territories฀for฀almost฀ six฀ centuries฀ now.฀ Articulated฀ by฀ a฀ vocation฀ to฀ spread฀ reason,฀ the฀ modern฀geopolitics฀of฀knowledge฀both฀established฀a฀center฀(the฀North฀ Atlantic)฀ and฀ surpassed฀ it,฀ thus฀ constituting฀ regional฀ academic฀ (and฀ intellectual)฀formations฀with฀their฀own฀centers,฀where฀the฀institutions฀ of฀reason฀accrued,฀and฀peripheries,฀where฀rational฀logic฀had฀a฀weaker฀ established฀presence.฀These฀regional฀formations฀comprise฀a฀complex฀ configuration฀ of฀ multiple,฀ hierarchically฀ organized฀ centers,฀ some฀ of฀ which฀are฀“peripheral”฀in฀relation฀to฀other฀“more฀central”฀ones. Running฀through฀this฀configuration,฀layered฀and฀many-directional฀ relations฀of฀domination฀and฀subordination฀contribute฀to฀shaping฀what฀ eventually฀is฀considered฀universal฀knowledge฀and฀what฀remains฀local฀ information—both฀worldwide฀and฀in฀specific฀countries.฀Indeed,฀this฀“universal”฀and฀this฀“local”฀are฀also฀relative฀within฀the฀configuration;฀how฀ far฀local฀knowledge฀makes฀it฀depends—we฀believe฀hegemonically—on฀ its฀“theoretical฀strength,”฀and฀this฀is฀problematical฀if฀by฀that฀we฀mean฀a฀ knowledge฀practice฀that฀extracts฀general฀notions฀out฀of฀local฀meanings฀ and,฀in฀the฀process,฀denies฀their฀singularity. To฀illustrate฀the฀hegemony฀of฀Euro-American฀forms฀of฀knowledge,฀ and฀specifically฀the฀process฀through฀which฀it฀is฀achieved,฀I฀attempt฀in฀ this฀chapter฀a฀genealogical฀and฀dialogical฀discussion฀of฀that฀aspect฀of฀ Latin฀American฀anthropology฀known฀as฀Andeanism.฀I฀follow฀Andeanism฀ as฀it฀connected฀with฀academic฀formations฀in฀the฀United฀States,฀as฀well฀ as฀ with฀ political-intellectual฀ discussions฀ within฀ Latin฀ America฀ and฀ Peru—specifically฀ with฀ debates฀ about฀ mestizaje฀ and฀ interculturalidad.1฀ I฀begin฀my฀story฀early฀in฀the฀twentieth฀century,฀when฀anthropology฀ had฀not฀yet฀coalesced฀as฀a฀discipline.฀Nevertheless,฀discussions฀about฀ “culture”฀fueled฀nationalist฀projects฀promoted฀by฀a฀regional฀network฀of฀ intellectuals฀who,฀under฀the฀rubric฀of฀mestizaje,฀eventually฀contributed฀ to฀the฀emergence฀and฀articulation฀of฀Latin฀America฀as฀a฀geopolitical฀ region฀of฀sorts.฀Significantly,฀the฀discussions฀were฀also฀marked฀by฀what฀ the฀sociologist฀Aníbal฀Quijano฀(1993)฀labeled฀“the฀coloniality฀of฀power,”฀ a฀historical฀geopolitical฀condition฀that฀delegitimated฀non-Western฀forms฀ of฀making฀sense฀of฀the฀world,฀temporalized฀them฀as฀premodern,฀and฀ thus฀set฀them฀up฀for฀what฀Johannes฀Fabian฀(1983)฀called฀noncoeval฀ representations.2 Later฀in฀the฀chapter,฀I฀describe฀the฀emergence฀of฀another฀network,฀ that฀of฀indigenous฀intellectuals.฀With฀an฀identity฀that฀would฀have฀been฀ oxymoronic฀at฀the฀turn฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century,฀when฀Indians฀were฀

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unthinkable฀as฀rational฀beings,฀let฀alone฀intellectuals,฀this฀network,฀acting฀ nationally฀and฀internationally,฀rebukes฀the฀homogenizing฀narrative฀of฀ mestizaje฀and฀proposes฀instead฀interculturalidad,฀a฀social฀relation฀able฀to฀ produce฀a฀political฀community฀that฀indigenous฀intellectuals฀imagine฀ through฀ethnic-cultural฀(even฀ontological)฀diversity. Before฀I฀describe฀this฀network,฀however,฀in฀the฀second฀section฀of฀the฀ chapter฀I฀interrupt฀what฀could฀otherwise฀have฀been฀a฀sequence—that฀ is,฀from฀mestizaje฀to฀anti-mestizaje฀and฀from฀traditional฀to฀grassroots฀ intellectuals฀and฀politicians.฀In฀this฀section฀I฀use฀the฀life฀and฀works฀of฀ the฀Peruvian฀literary฀writer฀and฀anthropologist฀José฀María฀Arguedas฀to฀ illustrate฀how฀Peruvian฀social฀scientists฀contributed฀to฀the฀hegemony฀ of฀universal฀knowledge฀in฀a฀peripheral฀center฀(Lima)฀by฀disqualifying฀ Arguedas’s฀ attempts฀ (visionary฀ in฀ the฀ 1960s)฀ to฀ redirect฀ mestizaje฀ into฀ interculturalidad฀ and฀ to฀ promote฀ the฀ diversity฀ that฀ indigenous฀ intellectuals฀currently฀champion.฀Arguedas฀was฀a฀controversial฀Peruvian฀ intellectual,฀ and฀ his฀ life฀ and฀ works฀ were฀ situated฀ at฀ several฀ highly฀ unusual฀ crossroads.฀ He฀ was฀ both฀ a฀ non-indigenous฀ intellectual฀ and฀ an฀indigenous฀Quechua,฀an฀ethnographer฀and฀a฀literary฀writer฀whose฀ work฀ resists฀ a฀ binary฀ classification฀ as฀ either฀ fiction฀ or฀ ethnography.฀ While฀this฀may฀be฀commonsensical฀to฀postcolonial฀sensibilities,฀in฀the฀ modernizing฀1960s฀Arguedas’s฀life฀and฀work฀defied฀the฀limits฀of฀certified฀ sociological-anthropological฀knowledge฀and฀the฀political฀projects฀this฀ knowledge฀sustained. Arguedas฀identified฀himself฀as฀“a฀civilized฀man฀who฀has฀not฀stopped฀ being฀at฀the฀core฀an฀indigenous฀Peruvian”฀(Dorfman฀1970:฀45).฀This฀ idea,฀also฀personified฀in฀the฀characters฀of฀his฀stories,฀challenged฀the฀ nationalist฀teleology฀of฀mestizaje,฀the฀idea฀that฀Indians฀would฀be฀included฀in฀the฀Peruvian฀nation฀as฀mestizos฀only฀once฀they฀completed฀ requirements฀for฀civilization.฀Arguedas’s฀self-identification,฀as฀well฀as฀ his฀work,฀strove฀against฀the฀“coloniality฀of฀power,”฀which฀supported฀ images฀of฀indigenous฀Andeans฀as฀“inferior,”฀and฀the฀ideological฀historicism฀ that฀ legitimated฀ this฀ perception.฀ By฀ historicism฀ I฀ mean฀ the฀ conceptualization฀of฀historical฀time฀as฀a฀measure฀of฀the฀“cultural”฀distance฀b-etween฀coexisting฀Western฀and฀non-Western฀formations฀(see฀ Chakrabarty฀2000).฀Intriguingly,฀and฀toward฀the฀construction฀of฀“world฀ anthropologies,”฀ Arguedas’s฀ work฀ disrupted฀ the฀ silent฀ hegemony฀ of฀ Western฀forms฀of฀knowledge.

The฀Inter-American฀Hub฀of฀Peruvian฀Anthropology Andeanism,฀as฀a฀set฀of฀academic฀ideas฀and฀fieldwork฀practices,฀emerged฀ in฀dialogue฀with฀anthropology฀in฀the฀United฀States฀and,฀in฀an฀apparent฀

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paradox,฀with฀Latin฀American฀debates฀about฀mestizaje.฀An฀important฀ actor฀in฀both฀networks฀was฀John฀Victor฀Murra,฀a฀Romanian฀by฀birth฀who,฀ in฀the฀1970s,฀while฀teaching฀anthropology฀at฀Cornell฀University,฀was฀ one฀of฀Arguedas’s฀most฀intense฀interlocutors.฀Yet฀Murra’s฀participation฀in฀ the฀US–Latin฀American฀network฀predated฀this฀friendship.฀I฀have฀traced฀ it฀back฀to฀1952,฀when฀Murra฀went฀to฀Jamaica฀as฀a฀PhD฀student฀hired฀by฀ Sidney฀Mintz,฀an฀anthropologist฀from฀the฀United฀States฀who฀was฀then฀ working฀in฀Puerto฀Rico฀under฀the฀sponsorship฀of฀Julian฀Steward.฀From฀ Jamaica,฀Murra฀went฀to฀Cuba,฀where฀he฀met฀Fernando฀Ortiz,฀the฀author฀of฀ Cuban฀Counterpoint:฀Tobacco฀and฀Sugar฀(1995฀[1947]),฀perhaps฀the฀earliest฀ historical฀ethnography฀produced฀by฀a฀Latin฀American฀intellectual,฀the฀ first฀edition฀of฀which฀had฀a฀prologue฀by฀Bronislaw฀Malinowski.฀Ortiz฀ coined฀ the฀ term฀ transculturación,฀ with฀ which฀ he฀ rebuked฀ the฀ notion฀ of฀“acculturation”฀and฀joined฀the฀discussion฀of฀mestizaje,฀if฀perhaps฀ only฀implicitly. From฀Cuba,฀Murra฀took฀a฀boat฀to฀Yucatán฀and฀then฀a฀plane฀to฀Mexico฀ City,฀where฀he฀met฀Ángel฀Palerm,฀a฀Spanish฀anthropologist฀who฀had฀ fled฀Francisco฀Franco’s฀fascism฀(Castro,฀Aldunate,฀and฀Hidalgo฀2000:฀43).฀ The฀group฀later฀included฀the฀Mexican฀Gonzalo฀Aguirre฀Beltrán,฀a฀crucial฀ interlocutor฀in฀the฀mestizaje฀dialogue฀who฀had฀studied฀anthropology฀at฀ Northwestern฀University฀with฀Melville฀Herskovitz฀and฀was,฀like฀Ortiz,฀ interested฀in฀Africanía.฀This฀dense฀network฀of฀friendships,฀collegiality,฀ chance,฀and฀political฀passions,฀connecting฀at฀least฀the฀United฀States,฀ Cuba,฀Mexico,฀and฀Spain,฀underscores฀the฀complexity฀of฀anthropological฀ conceptual฀itineraries฀across฀the฀Americas฀at฀the฀time฀and฀belies฀simple฀ unidirectional฀flows฀of฀knowledge฀from฀North฀to฀South.฀It฀also฀suggests฀ a฀regional฀Latin฀American฀intellectual฀formation฀that฀crossed฀national฀ boundaries฀and฀connected฀genealogically฀with฀an฀earlier฀network,฀one฀ that฀existed฀before฀the฀creation฀of฀anthropology฀in฀Latin฀America. Articulated฀by฀a฀regionalist-cum-nationalist฀political฀drive,฀this฀network฀ had,฀ since฀ the฀ late฀ nineteenth฀ century,฀ grouped฀ intellectuals฀ around฀ the฀ idea฀ of฀ Indo-America,฀ a฀ subcontinental฀ community฀ that฀ intellectuals฀imagined฀emerging฀from฀their฀common฀pre-Columbian฀ and฀Hispanic฀cultural฀pasts.3฀Witnessing,฀participating฀in,฀or฀opposing฀ political฀events฀such฀as฀the฀Mexican฀Revolution฀and฀the฀increasingly฀ expansionist฀ventures฀of฀the฀United฀States฀in฀Latin฀America,฀particularly฀ the฀ Marine฀ invasion฀ of฀ Nicaragua฀ in฀ the฀ 1920s,฀ the฀ leaders฀ of฀ IndoAmerica฀knew฀of฀each฀other,฀and฀some฀even฀worked฀together.4฀Generally,฀ Indo-Americanists฀(commonly฀known฀as฀Indigenistas)฀were฀provincial฀ intellectuals฀(mostly฀lawyers)฀familiar฀with฀their฀surroundings:฀archaeological฀remains,฀folklore,฀colonial฀writings,฀vernacular฀languages,฀and฀ indigenous฀ways฀of฀living.

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As฀ anthropology฀ consolidated฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ States,฀ Indigenistas฀ traveled฀ north,฀ both฀ to฀ share฀ their฀ local฀ knowledge฀ with฀ their฀ US฀ counterparts฀ and฀ to฀ have฀ it฀ academically฀ certified.฀ Julio฀ C.฀ Tello,฀ an฀ archaeologist฀ from฀ Peru,฀ acquired฀ an฀ honorary฀ degree฀ at฀ Harvard฀ in฀ the฀early฀1920s,฀and฀the฀Mexican฀Manuel฀Gamio฀obtained฀his฀degree฀at฀ Columbia,฀where฀he฀was฀one฀of฀Franz฀Boas’s฀students.฀Luis฀E.฀Valcárcel,฀ head฀of฀the฀Museum฀of฀History฀in฀Lima฀(created฀in฀1930),฀toured฀several฀ universities฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ States,฀ where฀ he฀ was฀ “impressed฀ with฀ the฀ Boasian,฀Smithsonian,฀and฀Harvard฀institutions”฀(Salomon฀1985:฀89;฀ Valcárcel฀1981).฀The฀US฀academy,฀however,฀did฀not฀exhaust฀Indigenistas’฀ intellectual฀interests,฀for฀Indo-Americanism฀was฀also฀a฀political฀doctrine— and฀anti-imperialist฀at฀that.฀Mexico฀was฀an฀important฀ideological฀hub฀ in฀the฀network,฀the฀site฀of฀a฀successful฀revolution฀and฀a฀source฀of฀ideas฀ about฀mestizaje. Mestizaje฀was฀a฀demographic฀policy,฀a฀population-making฀tool,฀that฀ promised฀ to฀ uplift฀ the฀ indigenous฀ groups฀ by฀ shaking฀ off฀ their฀ backwardness.฀It฀represented฀Latin฀America’s฀potential฀as฀a฀future฀equal฀of฀ its฀northern฀neighbors฀while฀accepting฀the฀inferiority฀of฀the฀region฀in฀ its฀current฀stage฀of฀evolution.฀Navigating฀the฀political-academic฀network฀ that฀ connected฀ the฀ two฀ Americas,฀ Latin฀ American฀ nationalist฀ discussants฀of฀mestizaje฀encountered฀the฀concept฀of฀“acculturation”;฀ indeed,฀they฀might฀even฀have฀influenced฀it,฀as฀Ralph฀Beals฀(1953)฀seems฀ to฀ have฀ suggested.5฀ Resuming฀ Paul฀ Radin’s฀ (1913)฀ discussions฀ of฀ the฀ influence฀of฀whites฀on฀indigenous฀cultures฀in฀the฀United฀States,฀in฀1936฀ the฀ American฀ Anthropological฀ Association฀ included฀ “acculturation฀ studies”฀ as฀ a฀ legitimate฀ field฀ for฀ anthropological฀ work฀ and฀ defined฀ it฀ as฀ “the฀ investigation฀ of฀ the฀ cultures฀ of฀ natives฀ that฀ participate฀ in฀ civilized฀life.”6฀A฀year฀earlier,฀the฀Social฀Science฀Research฀Council฀(SSRC)฀ had฀ established฀ a฀ subcommittee฀ to฀ promote฀ “acculturation฀ studies”฀ (Beals฀1953;฀Patterson฀2001;฀Sartori฀1998),฀and฀the฀American฀Council฀ of฀Learned฀Societies฀(ACLS)฀created฀a฀Committee฀on฀Latin฀American฀ Studies฀that฀years฀later฀became฀an฀ACLS-SSRC฀joint฀committee.฀These฀ associations฀were฀to฀coordinate฀research฀and฀resources฀with฀policy฀needs฀ of฀ the฀ US฀ government฀ as฀ indicated฀ by฀ the฀ Office฀ of฀ Inter-American฀ Affairs,฀the฀coordinator฀of฀which฀was฀Nelson฀Rockefeller.฀With฀funds฀ from฀this฀institution,฀the฀North฀American฀John฀Collier฀joined฀Mexican฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ founding,฀ in฀ the฀ 1940s,฀ the฀ Instituto฀ Indigenista฀ Interamericano.฀ Its฀ mission฀ was฀ “to฀ carry฀ out฀ research฀ on฀ ‘Indian฀ problems’฀in฀countries฀in฀the฀Western฀Hemisphere”฀(Patterson฀2001:฀95).฀ Through฀these฀and฀other฀connections,฀“acculturation”฀entered฀the฀IndoAmericanist฀network,฀where฀it฀met฀both฀adherents฀and฀opponents.7

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Starting฀in฀this฀period,฀funds฀for฀collaborative฀research฀(particularly฀ from฀the฀United฀States)฀became฀a฀crucial฀component฀of฀Latin฀American(ist)฀anthropology฀and฀its฀politics.8฀The฀Handbook฀of฀South฀American฀ Indians฀(1947–59)฀is฀an฀icon฀of฀such฀collaboration.฀Produced฀under฀the฀ auspices฀of฀the฀Office฀of฀Inter-American฀Affairs฀and฀the฀leadership฀of฀the฀ archaeologist฀Wendell฀Bennet฀and฀the฀material-ecologist฀Julian฀Steward,฀ the฀Handbook฀resulted฀from฀a฀collaboration฀between฀Southerners฀and฀ Northerners฀that฀must฀have฀been฀fraught฀with฀the฀tensions฀of฀academic฀ hierarchies.฀ “The฀ North฀ American฀ creators฀ of฀ the฀ Handbook฀ and฀ the฀ French฀ethnologists฀of฀the฀Instituto฀Francés฀de฀Estudios฀Andinos฀took฀ as฀ apprentices฀ a฀ large฀ number฀ of฀ Peruvian฀ students,”฀ wrote฀ Frank฀ Salomon฀(1985:฀90).฀Yet฀the฀“Peruvian฀students”฀were฀prominent฀Indigenistas,฀salient฀participants฀in฀the฀regional฀mestizaje฀network฀and฀ influential฀“local”฀intellectual-politicians฀and฀lawmakers฀in฀Peru.฀Their฀ “apprenticeship”฀was฀specific฀to฀the฀discipline฀of฀anthropology฀then฀ emerging฀from฀the฀Indo-American฀network—a฀group฀that฀was฀politically฀influential฀in฀the฀South฀yet฀academically฀subordinated฀to฀North฀ Atlantic฀centers฀of฀knowledge,฀particularly฀to฀the฀United฀States฀and฀(to฀ a฀lesser฀degree)฀France. Concerned฀with฀the฀creation฀of฀Peru฀as฀a฀modern฀nation,฀enmeshed฀in฀ official฀politics,฀and฀boasting฀an฀Inca฀heritage,฀Peruvian฀anthropologists฀ chose฀past฀and฀present฀Andean฀“indigenous฀cultures”฀as฀their฀object฀of฀ study฀and฀political฀representation.฀The฀first฀anthropological฀institutions฀ to฀be฀established฀in฀Peru,฀in฀the฀1940s฀and฀under฀state฀sponsorship,฀were฀ museums,฀the฀Instituto฀de฀Etnología฀y฀Arqueología,฀and฀the฀Peruvian฀ chapter฀of฀the฀Instituto฀Indigenista฀Interamericano,฀which฀had฀its฀main฀ office฀in฀Mexico฀City.฀Over฀the฀next฀fifteen฀years,฀anthropology฀became฀ an฀ established฀ discipline฀ in฀ Peru,฀ and฀ as฀ the฀ epicenter฀ of฀ a฀ “culture฀ area”฀of฀its฀own,฀Peru฀became฀the฀center฀of฀US฀Andean฀anthropology,฀ rivaling฀ Mexico฀ and฀ shadowing฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ Andeanism฀ in฀ neighboring฀Bolivia,฀Ecuador,฀Chile,฀Argentina,฀and฀Colombia.฀In฀contrast฀to฀the฀situation฀in฀Mexico,฀the฀Peruvian฀state’s฀economic฀support฀ for฀anthropology฀weakened฀by฀the฀1960s,฀and฀the฀discipline฀came฀to฀ depend฀almost฀entirely฀on฀public฀and฀private฀funds฀from฀the฀United฀ States฀ and฀ Europe.฀ As฀ in฀ the฀ rest฀ of฀ the฀ world,฀ the฀ historical฀ linear฀ narrative฀proposed฀by฀modernization฀theory—in฀both฀its฀rightist฀and฀ leftist฀versions—weighed฀heavily฀on฀Peru฀during฀this฀period. In฀Peru,฀the฀prevalence฀of฀modernization฀paradigms฀meant฀reinforcing฀the฀teleology฀of฀mestizaje.฀The฀earlier฀Indigenista฀culture-history฀ nationalist฀rhetoric,฀however,฀was฀replaced฀by฀an฀economistic฀discourse฀ colored฀by฀the฀polarized฀political฀ideologies฀then฀prevalent.฀Conservative฀฀

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proposals฀ envisioned฀ Indians฀ becoming฀ “farmers”฀ or฀ normalized฀ as฀ urban฀ mestizos.฀ From฀ the฀ other฀ end฀ of฀ the฀ spectrum,฀ revolutionary฀ projects฀required฀“peasants”฀or฀“wage฀earners”฀rather฀than฀superstitious฀ Indians฀immersed฀in฀subsistence฀economies.฀Proponents฀of฀“dependency฀ theory”฀ shared฀ this฀ view.฀ “Dependentistas,”฀ as฀ they฀ were฀ known,฀ represented฀ a฀ left-inclined฀ conceptual฀ alternative฀ to฀ modernization฀ theories฀that฀emerged฀in฀Latin฀America฀and฀held฀that฀the฀region’s฀lack฀ of฀industrial฀development฀was฀a฀result฀of฀historical฀colonial฀relations฀ of฀ domination฀ and฀ contemporary฀ capitalist฀ economic฀ exploitation.฀ From฀this฀viewpoint,฀the฀influential฀Peruvian฀sociologist฀Aníbal฀Quijano฀ proposed฀in฀the฀1960s฀that฀mestizaje฀be฀conceptualized฀as฀cholificación— the฀transformation฀of฀the฀rural฀indio฀into฀the฀urban฀cholo. Thoroughly฀interdisciplinary฀and฀immersed฀in฀politics,฀anthropology฀ thrived฀in฀Peru฀in฀the฀1960s฀as฀discursive฀fields฀such฀as฀“peasants”฀and฀ “the฀ countryside”฀ proliferated฀ in฀ intellectual฀ discussions฀ in฀ connection฀with฀relatively฀successful฀rural฀social฀mobilizations.฀Accordingly,฀ social฀scientists฀evaluated฀and฀accepted฀or฀rejected฀foreign฀theoretical฀ influences฀ using฀ value฀ scales฀ stemming฀ from฀ their฀ ongoing฀ political฀ projects.฀ For฀ example,฀ anthropologists฀ working฀ with฀ the฀ state฀ welcomed฀ “applied฀ anthropology”;฀ adherents฀ of฀ dependency฀ theory฀ followed฀ the฀ work฀ of฀ Eric฀ Wolf฀ and฀ Maurice฀ Godelier;฀ and฀ Clifford฀ Geertz฀ and฀ Claude฀ Lévi-Strauss฀ had฀ little฀ impact.฀ “Culture”฀ became฀ the฀ concern฀ of฀ a฀ few฀ marginal฀ anthropologists฀ (whom฀ modernizing฀ Marxists฀usually฀considered฀conservatives)฀under฀the฀leadership฀of฀John฀ Murra.฀In฀dialogue฀with฀José฀María฀Arguedas,฀Murra฀popularized฀the฀ term฀lo฀Andino,฀a฀notion฀swiftly฀adopted฀by฀members฀of฀the฀Peruvian฀ Indigenista฀ network.฀ In฀ years฀ to฀ come,฀ this฀ notion฀ would฀ spur฀ an฀ interesting฀controversy฀in฀the฀United฀States.฀It฀was฀stimulated฀by฀the฀ criticism฀of฀Orin฀Starn,฀a฀US฀anthropologist฀who฀accused฀Andeanists฀ of฀political฀blindness฀because฀they฀had฀“missed฀the฀revolution”฀that฀ the฀Shining฀Path฀activists฀organized฀even฀in฀the฀villages฀where฀some฀ of฀the฀Andeanists฀worked฀(Starn฀1991). Although฀the฀discussion฀surrounding฀US฀Andeanism฀was฀not฀prominent฀ in฀ Peru,฀ controversy฀ over฀ Arguedas’s฀ work฀ has฀ long฀ survived฀ his฀death฀in฀1968.฀He฀was฀identified฀as฀the฀instigator฀of฀lo฀Andino—a฀ notion฀that฀many฀leading฀intellectuals฀interpreted฀as฀“culturalist.”฀His฀ anthropological฀production฀had฀little฀influence฀and฀is฀currently฀ignored.฀ His฀literary฀work,฀however,฀continues฀to฀be฀contentious฀among฀social฀ scientists฀and฀politicians฀alike.

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All฀the฀Bloods:฀Arguedas฀as฀an฀Unthinkable฀ Epistemological฀Revolution The฀ controversy฀ over฀ Arguedas’s฀ work฀ came฀ to฀ fruition฀ around฀ his฀ 1964฀ novel฀ Todas฀ las฀ sangres฀ (All฀ the฀ bloods).฀ In฀ the฀ late฀ 1960s,฀ at฀ the฀ Instituto฀ de฀ Estudios฀ Peruanos,฀ a฀ renowned฀ think฀ tank฀ in฀ Lima,฀ a฀ group฀ of฀ prominent฀ social฀ scientists฀ and฀ literary฀ critics฀ gathered฀ around฀a฀table฀and฀discussed฀the฀novel฀for฀many฀hours.9฀After฀a฀bitter฀ discussion—which฀was฀taped,฀transcribed,฀and฀published฀as฀a฀booklet฀ in฀the฀1980s—they฀arrived฀at฀the฀conclusion฀that฀the฀novel฀proposed฀ an฀unfeasible฀political฀project,฀one฀that฀could฀even฀be฀harmful฀to฀the฀ country.฀The฀roundtable฀meeting฀has฀become฀legendary฀in฀Peruvian฀ academic฀mythology:฀it฀represents฀a฀foundational฀moment฀of฀lo฀Andino฀ and฀of฀its฀scientific฀rejection. The฀publication฀of฀the฀novel฀coincided฀with฀a฀period฀of฀intense฀conflict฀ in฀Peru฀between฀large฀landowners฀and฀indigenous฀agriculturalists,฀known฀ as฀ “peasants”฀ or฀ “Indians.”฀ Inspired฀ by฀ a฀ combination฀ of฀ orthodox฀ Marxism,฀dependency฀theory,฀and฀indigenous฀politics,฀members฀of฀the฀ peasant฀movement฀were฀successfully฀seizing฀hacienda฀land.10฀Todas฀las฀ Sangres,฀although฀sympathetic฀to฀the฀rural฀struggle,฀contradicted฀the฀ leftist฀ intellectual-politicians’฀ script.฀ The฀ script,฀ common฀ to฀ Marxist฀ insurgencies฀ in฀ Latin฀ America฀ in฀ the฀ 1960s,฀ said฀ that฀ the฀ teachings฀ of฀political฀activists฀(the฀revolutionary฀vanguard)—as฀well฀as฀activism฀ itself—would฀ transform฀ Indians฀ into฀ peasants.฀ Illuminated฀ by฀ “class฀ consciousness,”฀these฀peasants฀would฀leave฀superstition฀and฀Indianness฀ behind฀and฀become฀compañeros,฀modern฀partners฀in฀history.฀In฀Todas฀ las฀sangres,฀Arguedas฀disputed฀this฀transformation฀and฀thereby฀touched฀ a฀highly฀sensitive฀political฀nerve฀among฀progressive฀intellectuals.฀Even฀ more฀significantly฀(and฀unacceptably),฀his฀novel฀posed฀an฀epistemological฀ challenge฀to฀the฀hegemony฀of฀the฀singular฀modern฀subject฀proposed฀ by฀leftist฀and฀conservative฀projects฀alike. Set฀ in฀ the฀ Andean฀ highlands,฀ the฀ novel฀ describes฀ a฀ bitter฀ dispute฀ between฀two฀brothers,฀don฀Fermín฀and฀don฀Bruno฀Aragón฀de฀Peralta,฀ supreme฀ lords฀ of฀ an฀ Andean฀ region.฀ Fermín฀ incarnates฀ capitalism,฀ progress,฀and฀reason฀and฀wants฀to฀modernize฀Peru.฀His฀regional฀project฀ is฀ to฀ develop฀ a฀ mine.฀ Bruno,฀ instead,฀ is฀ a฀ traditional฀ hacendado;฀ in฀ Arguedas’s฀words,฀“he฀considers฀modernization฀to฀be฀a฀danger฀to฀the฀ sanctity฀of฀the฀spirit”฀(1996฀[1965]:฀15). Flanked฀ by฀ the฀ two฀ brothers฀ stands฀ Demetrio฀ Rendón฀ Willka,฀ a฀ supervisor฀of฀the฀Indian฀workers฀in฀the฀novel฀and฀the฀core฀of฀the฀controversy฀at฀the฀roundtable.฀An฀Indian฀recently฀returned฀from฀several฀

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years฀in฀Lima,฀this฀character฀should฀have฀been฀purged฀of฀his฀superstitious฀ beliefs—following฀ the฀ dominant฀ mestizaje-acculturation฀ script—and฀ become฀an฀ex-Indian,฀an฀urbanized฀cholo,฀scornful฀of฀things฀indigenous.฀ Yet฀Willka฀belies฀the฀script.฀Formal฀education฀and฀urbanization฀have฀not฀ transformed฀him฀(as฀proposed฀by฀nationalist฀projects฀and฀state฀policies);฀ he฀alternates฀between฀urban฀and฀rural฀Indian฀garb฀with฀ease฀and฀selfidentifies฀as฀“a฀literate฀comunero;฀yet฀always฀a฀comunero”฀(Arguedas฀ 1964:฀33).฀Willka’s฀urban฀experience฀has฀taught฀him฀about฀the฀power฀ of฀modern฀technology,฀but฀he฀also฀acknowledges฀the฀might฀of฀the฀sun.฀ Rather฀than฀the฀typical฀hybrid฀on฀his฀way฀toward฀modernity,฀Willka฀ personifies฀ an฀ oxymoronic฀ hybridity฀ that฀ refuses฀ consistency฀ and฀ is฀ able฀to฀think฀and฀act฀in฀both฀modern฀and฀nonmodern฀terms—much฀ the฀way฀Arguedas฀himself฀revealed฀he฀did. By฀the฀end฀of฀the฀novel,฀Willka’s฀inconsistency฀crosses฀the฀tolerable฀ threshold฀as฀he฀enters฀the฀political฀sphere฀to฀organize฀an฀unprecedented฀ group฀ of฀ indigenous฀ leaders฀ who,฀ like฀ himself,฀ recognize฀ the฀ power฀ of฀mountains฀and฀rivers.฀Together฀they฀lead฀a฀successful฀insurrection,฀ moved฀by฀magic฀and฀reason฀alike.฀It฀is฀reminiscent฀of฀the฀1855฀Santal฀ rebellion฀in฀India฀as฀Ranajit฀Guha฀(1983b)฀has฀represented฀it.฀Ultimately,฀ Todas฀las฀sangres฀proposes฀an฀alternative฀indigenous฀social฀movement,฀ a฀critical฀ally฀of฀the฀modern฀left฀but฀with฀an฀amodern฀hybrid฀logic฀of฀ its฀own.฀Literacy฀and฀modern฀politics฀are฀important,฀but฀they฀have฀to฀ be฀selectively฀used฀and฀translated,฀rather฀than฀eradicating฀indigenous฀ ways.฀For฀example: In฀jail฀one฀learns฀a฀lot.฀There฀is฀a฀school฀there.฀You฀have฀to฀listen฀to฀the฀ politicians฀ [political฀ prisoners].฀ The฀ world฀ is฀ very฀ big.฀ But฀ you฀ do฀ not฀ have฀to฀follow฀what฀the฀politicians฀say.฀We฀have฀to฀learn฀what฀they฀teach฀ according฀to฀our฀understanding—nuestra฀conciencia.฀They฀are฀different.฀ Nobody฀knows฀us.฀You฀will฀see!!฀They฀are฀going฀to฀take฀you฀to฀prison฀.฀.฀.฀ You฀already฀know฀how฀to฀sign.฀In฀jail฀you฀will฀learn฀to฀read.฀Let฀them฀ take฀you฀to฀Lima!฀(1964:฀307)

In฀his฀analysis฀of฀the฀Haitian฀revolution,฀the฀historian฀Michel฀Rolph฀ Trouillot฀ explained฀ that฀ at฀ the฀ time฀ of฀ the฀ event฀ the฀ idea฀ of฀ black฀ slaves฀ fighting฀ for฀ the฀ independence฀ of฀ Haiti฀ was฀ unthinkable:฀ the฀ idea฀ of฀ black฀ people฀ (let฀ alone฀ slaves)฀ defying฀ power—and฀ on฀ their฀ own฀ terms—exceeded฀ historically฀ defined฀ conceptual฀ and฀ political฀ categories฀ (Trouillot฀ 1995).฀ Similarly,฀ the฀ minds฀ of฀ central฀ Limeño฀ intellectuals—many฀of฀them฀earnest฀socialists฀and฀prominent฀proponents฀ of฀dependency฀theory—in฀the฀1960s฀held฀no฀conceptual฀or฀political฀

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place฀ for฀ Rendón฀ Willka.฀ Aníbal฀ Quijano’s฀ eloquence฀ in฀ this฀ respect฀ has฀become฀legendary฀in฀Peruvian฀social฀science฀circles.฀About฀Rendón฀ Willka฀he฀wrote฀that this฀character฀is฀extremely฀equivocal.฀I฀had฀the฀impression฀that฀he฀returned฀ from฀ Lima฀ totally฀ cholificado,฀ and฀ that฀ he฀ was฀ going฀ to฀ proceed,฀ in฀ a฀ supremely฀astute฀and฀Machiavellian฀way,฀to฀assume฀political฀leadership฀ in฀the฀process฀of฀peasant฀insurrection,฀and฀therefore฀he฀appeared฀a฀little฀ in฀disguise฀among฀his฀own.฀But฀the฀next฀impression,฀particularly฀at฀the฀ end฀of฀the฀novel,฀suggests฀that฀Rendón฀reintegrates—not฀totally,฀not฀in฀ a฀fully฀conscious฀way,฀but฀in฀some฀sense฀he฀reintegrates—back฀into฀the฀ indigenous฀traditional฀[world].฀(Quijano฀in฀Rochabrún฀2000:฀59)

The฀indigenous฀world฀and฀its฀animated฀landscape฀were฀not฀the฀secular฀ arenas฀ that฀ modern฀ political฀ organization฀ required.฀ In฀ an฀ apparent฀ paradox,฀then,฀the฀analysis฀that฀Quijano฀(and฀many฀other฀socialists)฀ proposed฀worked฀as฀a฀“prose฀of฀counterinsurgency”฀(see฀Guha฀1988),฀for฀ even฀as฀rural฀upheavals฀took฀place฀under฀the฀leadership฀of฀indigenous฀ politicians฀ (probably฀ much฀ like฀ Rendón฀ Willka),฀ they฀ were฀ deemed฀ not฀to฀be฀indigenous฀political฀movements;฀they฀were฀only฀a฀subordinate฀ aspect฀of฀the฀revolutionary฀struggle฀led฀by฀urban฀politicians.฀Had฀not฀ Eric฀Hobsbawm฀(1959),฀whose฀analytical฀sample฀included฀Peruvian฀rural฀ movements,฀ defined฀ peasants฀ as฀ pre-political฀ actors?฀ The฀ notion฀ of฀ “change”฀encompassed฀by฀modernizing฀premises฀(including฀those฀of฀ dependency฀theory฀and฀class฀analysis)฀was฀specific:฀it฀moved฀forward฀ from฀past฀to฀future,฀from฀“superstition”฀to฀“historical฀consciousness.”฀ Untamed฀by฀this฀narrative,฀Willka฀represented฀the฀“Indianization฀of฀ politics,”฀ a฀ historical฀ impossibility฀ for฀ sociologists,฀ who฀ imagined฀ a฀ different฀kind฀of฀leader: I฀am฀currently฀working฀in฀research฀on฀peasant฀leadership,฀and฀last฀year฀ I฀traveled฀to฀several฀areas฀affected฀by฀the฀peasant฀movement.฀In฀all฀the฀ peasant฀unions฀I฀have฀visited,฀I฀have฀found฀only฀one฀indigenous฀leader.฀ Indigenous฀leadership฀does฀not฀exist฀today฀within฀the฀peasant฀movement;฀ it฀appears฀as฀an฀exception฀and฀in฀isolated฀fashion;฀the฀Indian฀leader฀is฀ himself฀ going฀ through฀ a฀ process฀ of฀ cholificación.฀ Thus,฀ I฀ do฀ not฀ think฀ that฀an฀indigenous฀solution฀to฀the฀peasant฀problem฀would฀be฀feasible.฀ (Quijano฀in฀Rochabrún฀2000:฀59–60)

These฀words—again,฀Aníbal฀Quijano’s—were฀the฀last฀ones฀transcribed฀ from฀the฀recording฀of฀the฀bitter฀roundtable฀session.฀Albeit฀simplified— given฀the฀tension฀of฀the฀session—they฀refer฀to฀a฀more฀complex฀argument฀

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published฀in฀the฀same฀year฀as฀Todas฀las฀sangres฀and฀soon฀to฀become฀ famous฀ as฀ cholificación.฀ It฀ described฀ the฀ transformation฀ of฀ Indians฀ into฀cholos,฀their฀de-Indianization,฀and฀their฀incomplete฀integration฀ into฀Western฀ways฀of฀being฀and฀knowing.11฀Notwithstanding,฀cholos฀ represented฀ a฀ hopeful฀ national฀ future.฀ They฀ indicated,฀ according฀ to฀ Quijano,฀“the฀emergence฀of฀an฀incipient฀mestizo฀culture,฀the฀embryo฀ of฀the฀future฀Peruvian฀nation฀if฀the฀tendency฀continues”฀(quoted฀in฀ Rochabrún,฀2000:฀103;฀my฀italics).12 Even฀a฀cursory฀contextualization฀of฀the฀debate฀makes฀it฀clear฀that฀ Quijano’s฀ position฀ was฀ not฀ unique,฀ although฀ he฀ might฀ have฀ been฀ Arguedas’s฀most฀articulate฀and฀vocal฀opponent฀at฀the฀roundtable.฀They฀ were฀friends฀and฀intense฀mutual฀interlocutors,฀so฀the฀discussion฀was฀ embedded฀in฀previous฀unresolved฀conversations,฀the฀details฀of฀which฀ I฀am฀unaware฀of.13฀This฀does฀not฀cancel,฀however,฀the฀conspicuously฀ historicist฀lexicon฀Quijano฀used฀to฀define฀cholos—notice฀the฀futureoriented฀words฀in฀the฀last฀phrase฀quoted:฀emergence,฀incipient,฀embryo,฀ the฀ future,฀ the฀ tendency—a฀ lexicon฀ that฀ prevailed฀ over฀ the฀ academic฀ and฀political฀logic฀of฀the฀period.14฀It฀saturated฀the฀imagination฀to฀the฀ point฀of฀seducing฀brilliant฀intellectuals฀to฀irrational฀historical฀oblivion:฀ they฀disregarded฀that฀cholos฀(albeit฀with฀different฀labels)฀had฀existed฀ (historically฀“in฀between”฀rather฀than฀“moving฀forward”)฀for฀almost฀five฀ hundred฀years,฀from฀the฀Spanish฀invasion฀of฀the฀Andes฀to฀the฀1960s.฀ From฀the฀historicist฀perspective,฀Demetrio฀Rendón฀Willka฀was฀not฀only฀ a฀contradiction,฀he฀was฀impossible.฀He฀emerged฀from฀the฀genealogy฀ of฀mestizaje฀only฀to฀belie฀its฀teleology฀as฀his฀character฀proposed฀that฀ indigenous฀ways฀of฀being,฀rather฀than฀assuming฀the฀forward-moving฀ history฀of฀modernity฀or฀simply฀“persisting,”฀had฀a฀historicity฀of฀their฀ own,฀the฀undeniable฀power฀of฀industrial฀capitalism฀notwithstanding. More฀significantly,฀Willka’s฀political฀leadership฀implied฀the฀inclusion฀ of฀ indigenous฀ forms฀ of฀ knowledge฀ in฀ nationwide฀ projects฀ and฀ thus฀ challenged฀ the฀ knowledge-power฀ premise฀ of฀ socialism,฀ which,฀ as฀ secular฀ communalism,฀ required฀ the฀ “cooperation฀ of฀ rational฀ beings฀ emancipated฀from฀gods฀and฀magic.”15฀Socialist฀liberating฀politics฀required฀ the฀supremacy฀of฀reason,฀and฀Todas฀las฀sangres,฀perhaps฀prematurely,฀ opposed฀this฀fundamentalism.฀Arguedas฀explained฀that฀“socialist฀theory฀ gave฀a฀course฀to฀my฀whole฀future,฀to฀all฀my฀energy;฀it฀gave฀me฀a฀destiny฀ and฀charged฀it฀with฀might฀by฀the฀direction฀it฀gave฀it.฀How฀much฀did฀I฀ understand฀socialism?฀I฀do฀not฀really฀know.฀But฀it฀did฀not฀kill฀the฀magic฀ in฀me฀[Pero฀no฀mató฀en฀mí฀lo฀mágico]”฀(1971:฀283). Arguedas’s฀effort,฀I฀believe,฀paralleled,฀from฀some฀thirty฀years฀earlier,฀ Dipesh฀Chakrabarty’s฀project฀of฀“provincializing฀Europe”฀(Chakrabarty฀

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2000).฀Suggesting฀that฀European฀thought฀was฀indispensable฀yet฀inadequate฀for฀exploring฀questions฀of฀political฀modernity฀in฀the฀Third฀World,฀ Chakrabarty฀examined฀the฀possibilities฀of฀renewing฀and฀transforming฀ currently฀hegemonic฀forms฀of฀knowing฀from฀the฀margins฀of฀modernity.฀ Similarly,฀in฀his฀literary฀work฀and฀testimonials,฀Arguedas฀proposed฀an฀ alternative฀politics฀of฀knowledge,฀one฀that฀saw฀the฀necessity฀of฀Western฀ reason฀and฀its฀simultaneous฀incapacity฀to฀translate,฀let฀alone฀capture฀ or฀ replace,฀ Andean฀ ways฀ of฀ being.฀ Rather฀ than฀ reading฀ Arguedas฀ as฀ proposing฀a฀multiculturalism฀tolerant฀of฀“all฀bloods”16—as฀his฀politics฀ has฀been฀interpreted฀(Karp฀2003)—I฀want฀to฀read฀him฀as฀proposing฀multiontologism฀and฀a฀nationalism฀capable฀of฀being฀both฀general฀and฀singular,฀ articulated฀by฀both฀reason฀and฀magic฀on฀equal฀standing,฀and฀socialist฀ at฀that.17฀Beyond฀prevalent฀economistic฀explanations,฀he฀exposed฀the฀ way฀capitalism฀derived฀its฀power฀from฀the฀will฀of฀proponents฀of฀modern฀ epistemologies฀to฀replace฀non-Western฀ontologies฀with฀modern฀forms฀of฀ consciousness.฀Thus฀he฀unveiled฀what฀Quijano฀(perhaps฀moved฀by฀this฀ encounter,฀yet฀almost฀thirty฀years฀after฀it฀happened)฀theorized฀as฀“the฀ coloniality฀of฀power,”฀a฀notion฀that฀undermines฀the฀teleological฀logic฀ needed฀to฀sustain฀cholificación฀(see฀Quijano฀1993).฀In฀the฀late฀1960s,฀ however,฀with฀only฀one฀exception฀(a฀linguist฀named฀Alberto฀Escobar),฀ all฀participants฀in฀the฀mesa฀redonda฀derided฀Arguedas’s฀project. The฀author฀of฀Todas฀las฀sangres฀was฀as฀complex฀as฀the฀characters฀he฀ created—he฀ was฀ like฀ Rendón฀ Willka,฀ he฀ disclosed฀ to฀ one฀ of฀ his฀ colleagues18—and฀as฀“unthinkable”฀(in฀Trouillot’s฀terms)฀for฀his฀intellectual฀ interlocutors฀of฀the฀sixties฀and฀seventies.฀The฀son฀of฀a฀provincial฀lawyer,฀ and฀prey฀of฀a฀wicked฀stepmother,฀Arguedas฀was฀raised฀by฀indigenous฀men฀ and฀women฀(Arguedas฀1996฀[1965]).฀In฀1969฀he฀told฀Ariel฀Dorfman:฀“For฀ someone฀who฀first฀learned฀how฀to฀speak฀in฀Quechua฀[as฀he฀had],฀there฀ is฀nothing฀that฀is฀not฀a฀part฀of฀the฀self.”฀And฀this฀ontology฀equipped฀ him฀with฀a฀way฀of฀knowing,฀he฀continued฀in฀the฀same฀interview: I฀was฀purely฀Quechua฀until฀my฀adolescence.฀I฀will฀probably฀never฀be฀able฀ to฀let฀go฀of฀.฀.฀.฀my฀initial฀conceptualizations฀of฀the฀world.฀For฀a฀monolingual฀ Quechua฀ speaker,฀ the฀ world฀ is฀ alive;฀ there฀ is฀ not฀ much฀ difference฀between฀a฀mountain,฀an฀insect,฀a฀huge฀stone,฀and฀a฀human฀being.฀ There฀ are,฀ therefore,฀ no฀ boundaries฀ between฀ the฀ “marvelous”฀ and฀ the฀ “real.”฀ .฀.฀.฀ there฀ is฀ neither฀ much฀ difference฀ between฀ the฀ religious,฀ the฀ magical,฀and฀the฀objective฀worlds.฀A฀mountain฀is฀god,฀a฀river฀is฀god,฀and฀ centipedes฀have฀supernatural฀virtues.฀(Dorfman฀1970:฀45)

Rebuking฀ the฀ directionality฀ of฀ mestizaje฀ on฀ a฀ different฀ occasion,฀ he฀ declared:฀ “I฀ am฀ not฀ acculturated,”฀ and฀ he฀ reiterated฀ his฀ pleasure฀ at฀

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being฀indigenous฀and฀non-indigenous฀simultaneously:฀“I฀am฀a฀Peruvian฀ who฀proudly,฀like฀a฀joyous฀devil,฀speaks฀in฀Christian฀and฀in฀Indian,฀in฀ Spanish฀and฀in฀Quechua”฀(Arguedas฀1971:฀282).฀This฀speech฀has฀become฀ famous฀among฀Latin฀American(ist)฀literary฀critics,฀who฀usually฀see฀in฀it฀ a฀confession฀of฀the฀author’s฀dramatically฀singular฀life฀trajectory,฀even฀ an฀explanation฀of฀his฀death฀by฀suicide,฀evidence฀of฀the฀impossibility฀ of฀his฀way฀of฀being. Contained฀ within฀ literature—up฀ until฀ the฀ debate฀ about฀ Todas฀ las฀ sangres฀at฀least—the฀writer’s฀ideas฀were฀considered฀“magical฀realism,”฀ the฀literary฀genre฀in฀which฀the฀uncanny฀ceases฀to฀be฀such฀and฀becomes฀ ordinary.19฀ And฀ in฀ Arguedas’s฀ life฀ the฀ uncanny฀ was฀ ordinary—not฀ quite฀ an฀ object฀ of฀ study,฀ but฀ part฀ of฀ his฀ subjectivity.฀ “I฀ know฀ Peru฀ through฀life,”฀he฀used฀to฀say฀(1996฀[1965]:฀50).฀With฀life฀as฀a฀source฀ of฀ knowledge฀ and฀ literature฀ as฀ his฀ expressive฀ genre,฀ he฀ blurred฀ the฀ distinction฀between฀reality฀and฀fiction.฀He฀described฀the฀stories฀he฀heard฀ and฀used฀as฀inspiration฀as฀“absolutely฀true฀and฀absolutely฀imagined.฀ Flesh฀and฀bones฀and฀pure฀illusion”฀(1971:฀22).฀I฀suspect฀that฀canonical฀ practitioners฀ of฀ the฀ social฀ sciences฀ had฀ a฀ hard฀ time฀ with฀ Arguedas’s฀ assertions.฀Even฀anthropologists฀would฀have฀disagreed:฀the฀animated฀ landscape฀and฀“magical”฀insects฀belonged฀to฀the฀realm฀of฀indigenous฀ beliefs,฀and฀as฀such฀they฀were฀distant฀objects฀of฀study,฀and฀vanishing฀ at฀that.฀The฀discipline฀was฀politically฀at฀odds฀with฀Arguedas’s฀views.฀He฀ wrote฀in฀a฀letter฀to฀John฀Murra฀on฀3฀November฀1967: Development฀ projects฀ to฀ integrate฀ the฀ indigenous฀ population฀ have฀ become฀instruments฀that฀aim฀to฀categorically฀uproot฀Indians฀from฀their฀ own฀ traditions฀ .฀.฀.฀ famous฀ anthropologists฀ .฀.฀.฀ preach฀ with฀ scientific฀ terminology฀ about฀ .฀.฀.฀ the฀ inexistence฀ of฀ a฀ Quechua฀ culture;฀ they฀ say฀ that฀ Peru฀ is฀ not฀ bicultural฀ and฀ that฀ indigenous฀ communities฀ have฀ a฀ subculture฀that฀will฀be฀difficult฀to฀uplift฀to฀the฀level฀of฀national฀culture.฀ (Murra฀and฀López฀Baralt฀1996:฀162).

Amid฀the฀modernizing฀will฀and฀the฀rigid฀political-economic฀positions฀ that฀colored฀the฀controversial฀roundtable฀and฀continued฀to฀characterize฀ academic฀ thought฀ in฀ the฀ following฀ decades,฀ scholars’฀ concerns฀ for฀ Andean฀ singularities฀ gradually฀ became฀ labeled฀ lo฀ Andino,฀ confined฀ (many฀times฀scornfully)฀to฀anthropology฀and฀ethnohistory,฀the฀sciences฀ of฀the฀past;฀sociologists฀and฀economists—scholars฀of฀“social฀change”— devoted฀themselves฀to฀the฀study฀of฀the฀present.฀As฀notions฀of฀lo฀Andino฀ circulated฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ States฀ and฀ became฀ Andeanism,฀ Arguedas’s฀ political฀ suggestion฀ for฀ an฀ alternative฀ form฀ of฀ knowing—which฀ he฀ phrased฀as฀a฀demand฀for฀“magic”฀to฀be฀considered฀on฀a฀par฀with฀reason฀

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and฀for฀“informants”฀to฀become฀subjects฀of฀knowledge—disappeared.฀ Through฀a฀combination฀of฀French฀structuralism,฀British฀functionalism,฀ and฀US฀Andean฀ethnohistory,฀indigenous฀knowledge฀eventually฀became฀ “Andean฀thought,”฀the฀object฀of฀theoretical฀explanations฀that฀translated฀ the฀singularities฀of฀Andean฀ways฀of฀being฀into฀the฀universal฀languages฀of฀ “structures”฀and฀“systems.”฀The฀label฀described฀a฀type฀of฀anthropology฀ interested฀in฀the฀cultural฀specificities฀of฀the฀region,฀the฀genealogy฀of฀ which฀ connects฀ with฀ A.฀ L.฀ Kroeber’s฀ notion฀ of฀ “culture฀ areas”฀ and฀ Indigenista฀political฀views.฀Controversial฀since฀its฀inception,฀lo฀Andino฀ also฀connected฀with฀the฀preexisting฀inter-American฀mestizaje฀network,฀ inasmuch฀as฀it฀endorsed฀Indo-America฀as฀a฀peculiar฀cultural-political฀ entity฀(Rama฀1982).฀Additionally,฀it฀promoted฀a฀specifically฀regional฀ formation฀ that฀ interlocked฀ anthropologies฀ from฀ Ecuador,฀ Colombia,฀ Bolivia,฀and฀northern฀Chile฀and฀Argentina.

Indigenous฀Politics฀and฀the฀End฀of฀Mestizaje:฀ Interculturalidad,฀or฀Knowledge฀as฀Dialogic฀ Relationship I฀have฀been฀told฀that฀the฀roundtable฀discussion฀of฀Todas฀las฀sangres฀had฀ no฀ immediate฀ repercussions;฀ the฀ tapes฀ were฀ lost฀ and฀ not฀ unearthed฀ until฀ several฀ years฀ later,฀ during฀ a฀ cleaning฀ spree฀ at฀ the฀ Instituto฀ de฀ Estudios฀Peruanos.20฀Yet฀the฀tense฀and฀at฀times฀heated฀dispute฀was฀not฀an฀ ephemeral฀and฀isolated฀incident.฀Once฀the฀transcription฀was฀published฀ as฀a฀pamphlet฀(which฀has฀had฀several฀editions),฀the฀event฀became฀a฀topic฀ of฀conversation฀in฀Peruvian฀and฀international฀academic฀circles. The฀controversy฀featured฀a฀double,฀intertwined฀disagreement.21฀Epistemologically,฀the฀discussion฀expressed฀the฀tension฀between฀a฀widespread฀ analytical฀tradition฀that฀“tends฀to฀evacuate฀the฀local฀by฀assimilating฀it฀to฀ some฀abstract฀universal;฀and฀a฀hermeneutic฀tradition฀that฀finds฀thought฀ intimately฀tied฀to฀places฀and฀to฀particular฀forms฀of฀life”฀(Chakrabarty฀ 2000:฀18).฀Politically,฀the฀discussions฀in฀the฀mesa฀redonda฀were฀a฀prelude฀ to฀the฀intense฀disputes฀that฀pitted฀“campesinista”฀(or฀“clasista”)฀political฀ leaders฀ against฀ their฀ “indianista”฀ counterparts,฀ which฀ took฀ place฀ all฀ over฀Latin฀America฀in฀the฀last฀decades฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century฀(Hale฀ 1994;฀Yashar฀1998).฀These฀were฀part฀of฀a฀process฀that฀some฀have฀labeled฀ “the฀return฀of฀the฀Indian”฀(Albó฀1991;฀Ramón฀1993;฀Wearne฀1996),฀a฀ reference฀to฀the฀increasing฀political฀significance฀of฀social฀movements฀ that฀ articulated฀ their฀ demands฀ around฀ indigenous฀ rights฀ and฀ ethnic฀ claims—and฀that฀in฀one฀way฀or฀another฀challenged฀simplistic,฀universalizing฀analytical฀viewpoints.

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Emerging฀ in฀ the฀ early฀ 1970s,฀ organizations฀ such฀ as฀ the฀ Consejo฀ Regional฀ Indígena฀ del฀ Cauca฀ (CRIC)฀ in฀ Colombia,฀ ECUARUNARI฀ in฀ Ecuador,฀AIDESEP฀in฀Peru,฀and฀the฀Movimiento฀Revolucionario฀Tupac฀ Katari฀in฀Bolivia฀surged฀into฀the฀political฀pictures฀of฀their฀countries,฀ demanding฀and฀enacting฀indigenous฀citizenship.฀Since฀their฀inception฀ the฀ movements฀ have฀ proposed฀ projects฀ that฀ defy฀ the฀ teleology฀ of฀ mestizaje.฀ Accordingly,฀ by฀ the฀ 1980s฀ (albeit,฀ like฀ any฀ other฀ political฀ organization,฀pervaded฀by฀internal฀ideological฀conflicts)฀they฀managed฀ to฀install฀a฀new฀nationalist฀(yet฀highly฀heteroglossic)฀vocabulary.฀Words฀ such฀as฀pluriethnic,฀pluricultural,฀and฀plurinational฀reflected฀their฀demands฀ for฀ respect฀ of฀ their฀ ethnic฀ singularities.฀ More฀ significantly,฀ the฀ new฀ terminology,฀in฀its฀very฀heteroglossia,฀challenged฀the฀homogeneity฀that฀ sustained฀nationalist฀ideals฀and฀the฀state฀formation฀that฀implemented฀ them.฀Indigenous฀political฀organizations฀gradually฀acquired฀prominence฀ and฀ jumped฀ to฀ center฀ stage฀ in฀ the฀ 1990s,฀ coinciding฀ with฀ the฀ quincentenary฀of฀Columbus’s฀landfall฀in฀the฀Americas.฀Perhaps฀the฀most฀ unexpected฀and฀spectacular฀event฀in฀this฀respect฀was฀the฀Ecuadorian฀ levantamiento฀indígena฀(indigenous฀uprising),฀which฀shook฀the฀country฀ and฀saw฀the฀occupation฀of฀the฀capital,฀Quito,฀in฀June฀1990.฀According฀ to฀the฀Ecuadorian฀historian฀Galo฀Ramón฀(1993:฀2),฀the฀levantamiento฀ “removed฀the฀dam฀that฀the฀dominant฀project฀for฀a฀national฀state฀had฀ created฀since฀1830.” Predictably฀(although฀surprisingly฀and฀still฀inadmissibly฀to฀some),฀the฀ political฀mobilization—the฀return฀of฀the฀Indian—also฀meant฀an฀“uprising฀ of฀knowledges”฀(see฀Foucault฀1980:฀81–87),฀the฀insurrection฀of฀ways฀ of฀knowing฀defined฀by฀science฀as฀local,฀disqualified,฀and฀illegitimate.฀ Reminiscent฀of฀Arguedas’s฀character฀Rendón฀Willka,฀the฀original฀leaders฀ of฀the฀movement฀were฀indigenous฀persons฀who฀combined฀rural฀and฀ urban฀ experience,฀ as฀ did฀ the฀ movement฀ as฀ it฀ deftly฀ appropriated฀ modern฀practices฀and฀transformed฀their฀logic.฀Illustrative฀of฀this,฀and฀ from฀ the฀ very฀ beginning,฀ the฀ movement’s฀ political฀ demonstrations฀ boasted฀Andean฀ritual฀iconography฀and฀enactments,฀thus฀desecularizing฀ politics,฀as฀in฀Arguedas’s฀novel.฀Intended฀as฀“acts฀of฀memory”฀(see฀Bal฀ 1999),฀the฀desecularized฀political฀rituals฀also฀defied฀official฀nationalist฀ histories,฀ introducing฀ into฀ the฀ political฀ pantheon฀ the฀ presence฀ and฀ ideas฀of฀indigenous฀activists. In฀Bolivia,฀for฀example,฀as฀the฀memory฀of฀Tupac฀Katari฀was฀revitalized฀ and฀politicized,฀his฀phrase฀“I฀will฀return฀transformed฀into฀thousands”฀ became฀central฀to฀the฀indigenous฀social฀movement.฀Tupac฀Katari฀was฀ an฀indigenous฀insurgent฀who฀led฀an฀anticolonial฀struggle฀at฀the฀end฀ of฀the฀eighteenth฀century;฀his฀very฀memory฀demanded฀the฀restoration฀

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of฀indigenous฀actions฀and฀knowledges฀in฀history—the฀decolonization฀ of฀ history.฀ Urged฀ on฀ by฀ this฀ need,฀ the฀ social฀ movements฀ produced฀ their฀ own฀ organic฀ intellectuals,฀ and฀ indigenous฀ university฀ students฀ and฀ professors฀ decided฀ to฀ “recover฀ and฀ reelaborate฀ the฀ indigenous฀ past฀ and฀ its฀ forms฀ of฀ historical฀ knowledge”฀ (Ticona฀ 2000:฀ 12).฀ They฀ also฀established฀nongovernmental฀organizations฀such฀as฀the฀Taller฀de฀ Historia฀Oral฀Andina฀(THOA),฀which฀has฀functioned฀in฀La฀Paz,฀Bolivia,฀ since฀1983–84฀and฀works฀to฀“investigate,฀disseminate,฀and฀revitalize฀ the฀culture,฀history,฀and฀identity฀of฀indigenous฀peoples.”22 The฀process฀of฀rewriting฀indigenous฀histories฀and฀transforming฀the฀ political฀ habitus฀ in฀ Andean฀ countries฀ is฀ no฀ panacea.฀ Like฀ any฀ other฀ political฀process,฀this฀one฀has฀been฀fraught฀with฀power฀struggles฀and฀ expressed฀in฀essentialisms,฀factionalisms,฀and฀the฀production฀of฀universalizing฀ metanarratives฀ of฀ its฀ own฀ (Albó฀ 1994;฀ Ticona฀ 2000;฀ Van฀ Cott฀2000;฀Warren฀1998).฀However,฀it฀has฀certainly฀burst฀open฀the฀evolutionary฀narratives฀of฀indigeneity฀and฀advanced฀a฀politics฀of฀indigenous฀ heterogeneity.฀Within฀this฀novel฀narrative,฀though฀in฀reference฀to฀the฀ Maya฀area฀and฀not฀the฀Andes,฀the฀Guatemalan-Maya฀historian฀Edgar฀ Esquit฀(2000:4)฀explained฀that฀“Mayaness฀is฀what฀Mayas฀do,฀provided฀ that฀other฀Mayas฀recognize฀it฀as฀such.” More฀ importantly,฀ the฀ public฀ (and฀ at฀ times฀ highly฀ influential)฀ presence฀of฀indigenous฀intellectuals฀has฀made฀obvious฀the฀possibility฀ for฀ an฀ epistemic฀ borderland฀ (see฀ Mignolo฀ 2000)฀ where,฀ at฀ ease฀ or฀ awkwardly,฀rational฀knowledge฀cohabits฀with฀nonrational฀knowledge.฀ Organized฀in฀social฀movements,฀this฀blend฀sustains฀political฀projects฀ that฀have฀as฀an฀important฀ambition฀the฀transformation฀of฀the฀modern฀ state.฀The฀most฀widespread฀expression฀of฀this฀attempt฀is฀currently฀ phrased฀ as฀ interculturalidad,฀ a฀ political฀ project฀ through฀ which฀ the฀ indigenous฀ social฀ movement฀ in฀ Ecuador,฀ for฀ example,฀ proposes฀ to฀ create฀ “a฀ plurinational฀ state฀ that฀ recognizes฀ the฀ diversity฀ of฀ its฀ peoples”฀(Yumbay฀2001:฀14). Sustained฀and฀produced฀by฀political฀organizations฀frequently฀opposed฀ to฀the฀neoliberal฀policies฀that฀Latin฀American฀states฀have฀implemented฀ since฀ the฀ 1980s฀ (Selverston-Scher฀ 2001),฀ interculturalidad฀ belongs฀ to฀ the฀genealogy฀of฀mestizaje฀yet฀works฀against฀the฀coloniality฀of฀powerknowledge฀and฀the฀“stageist”฀narrative฀of฀history฀that฀sustains฀it.฀Like฀ mestizaje,฀ interculturalidad฀ produces฀ and฀ is฀ produced฀ by฀ a฀ dialogic,฀ academic-political,฀intellectual฀Latin฀American฀network,฀but฀the฀current฀ network฀ (enhanced฀ by฀ the฀ World฀ Wide฀ Web)฀ includes฀ indigenous฀ intellectual-politicians฀ and฀ global฀ institutions฀ ranging฀ from฀ funding฀ agencies฀such฀as฀Oxfam฀America฀to฀multilateral฀organizations฀such฀as฀

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the฀World฀Bank.฀Emerging฀in฀the฀1970s฀from฀discussions฀about฀bilingual฀ education฀ programs฀ for฀ elementary฀ schools฀ in฀ Peru,฀ Ecuador,฀ and฀ Bolivia,฀interculturalidad฀(again,฀like฀mestizaje)฀is฀a฀highly฀heteroglossic฀ notion.฀The฀most฀widespread฀Peruvian฀version฀is฀a฀state฀project฀defined฀ as฀a฀“dialogue฀among฀cultures”฀(Godenzzi฀1996),฀which฀continues฀to฀ function฀as฀a฀biopolitical฀attempt฀to฀“improve฀Indians”฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀ notions฀of฀bilingual฀education฀(Quechua฀and฀Spanish)฀that฀emphasize฀ Western฀literacy฀techniques.฀In฀Bolivia,฀the฀PROEIB฀Andes,฀a฀college฀ for฀bilingual฀education฀teachers฀in฀Cochabamba,฀has฀featured฀a฀similar฀ mission฀since฀it฀was฀established฀in฀1996.฀In฀both฀countries,฀the฀main฀ activities฀are฀administered฀and฀funded฀by฀the฀state฀through฀the฀Ministry฀ of฀ Education,฀ and฀ the฀ participation฀ of฀ indigenous฀ organizations฀ is฀ marginal. Yet฀interculturalidad฀also฀has฀an฀ambitious,฀even฀radical,฀version฀that฀ aims฀at฀forging฀a฀world฀characterized฀by฀“pacific฀cohabitation฀among฀ peoples฀and฀cultures,฀based฀on฀justice฀and฀equality฀for฀all”฀(Menchú฀1998:฀ 13).฀Toward฀that฀goal,฀in฀Ecuador฀“the฀indigenous฀movement฀has฀had฀as฀ one฀of฀its฀main฀political฀and฀ideological฀objectives฀the฀construction฀of฀ interculturalidad฀as฀a฀principle฀that฀articulates฀demands฀to฀a฀monocultural฀ state฀and฀that฀aims฀at฀transforming฀the฀very฀conceptualization฀of฀the฀ state฀itself”฀(Walsh฀2002:฀115).฀The฀greatest฀challenge฀for฀interculturalidad฀ is฀ to฀ become฀ a฀ new฀ social฀ relationship฀ that,฀ along฀ with฀ feminisms,฀ environmentalisms,฀and฀indigenous฀social฀movements,฀can฀confront฀ former฀social฀hierarchies฀of฀reason,฀property,฀gender,฀and฀sexuality฀and฀ produce฀a฀democratic฀state฀that฀“does฀not฀hold฀cultural฀renunciation฀ as฀a฀condition฀for฀citizenship”฀(Tubino฀2002). Seemingly,฀ then,฀ in฀ one฀ of฀ its฀ most฀ consequential฀ versions,฀ interculturalidad฀is฀both฀a฀novel฀(and,฀I฀would฀say,฀deeply฀subversive)฀statemaking฀technology฀and฀an฀epistemological฀site฀for฀the฀production฀of฀a฀ different฀kind฀of฀knowledge.฀Related฀to฀this฀(as฀well฀as฀to฀the฀urgency฀ of฀ rewriting฀ national฀ history฀ and฀ producing฀ histories),฀ the฀ creation฀ of฀ alternative฀ centers฀ of฀ knowledge฀ has฀ been฀ a฀ central฀ concern฀ of฀ indigenous฀social฀movements.฀In฀Ecuador,฀the฀Universidad฀Intercultural฀ represents฀such฀an฀effort.฀A฀document฀stating฀its฀goals฀describes฀it฀as฀a฀ plural฀space฀(that฀is,฀not฀exclusively฀indigenous฀or฀for฀the฀production฀ of฀“indigenous฀knowledge”)฀designed฀“for฀the฀creation฀of฀novel฀conceptual฀and฀analytical฀frameworks,฀able฀to฀produce฀new฀categories฀and฀ notions฀ that฀ have฀ ‘interculturalidad’฀ as฀ their฀ epistemological฀ framework”฀(Instituto฀Científico฀de฀Culturas฀Indígenas฀2000).฀This฀editorial฀ document฀criticizes฀modern฀science฀as฀having฀emerged฀from฀a฀monologue฀and฀having฀built฀self-referential฀categories฀“that฀did฀not฀allow฀

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the฀ inclusion฀ of฀ the฀ ‘strange’฀ and฀ ‘different’฀ within฀ the฀ borders฀ of฀ knowledge.”฀Intriguingly,฀it฀concludes฀with฀a฀series฀of฀questions: If฀modern฀science฀has฀been฀monologic,฀and฀if฀the฀conditions฀for฀knowing฀are฀always฀implicated฀in฀the฀conditions฀of฀power,฀then฀how฀can฀we฀ generate฀the฀conditions฀for฀a฀dialogue?฀How฀do฀we฀articulate฀interculturalidad฀within฀the฀limits฀of฀epistemology฀and฀the฀conditions฀of฀knowledge฀ production?฀How฀do฀we฀contribute฀to฀the฀adventure฀of฀knowledge฀from฀ different฀sources?฀[¿Como฀aportar฀a฀la฀aventura฀del฀conocimiento฀desde฀ nuevas฀fuentes?]฀(Instituto฀Científico฀de฀Culturas฀Indígenas฀2000)

I฀want฀to฀bring฀these฀stimulating฀questions฀to฀the฀arena฀of฀anthropology—which฀ the฀ Universidad฀ Intercultural฀ rightly฀ criticizes฀ as฀ having฀ constituted฀ itself฀ by฀ creating฀ and฀ maintaining฀ indigenous฀ peoples฀as฀others฀and,฀moreover,฀by฀excluding฀their฀possibility฀for฀selfunderstanding.฀I฀want฀to฀use฀the฀questions฀as฀an฀opportunity฀to฀call฀ for฀an฀anthropology฀(most฀specifically฀for฀an฀ethnographic฀production)฀ articulated฀ by฀ what฀ I฀ call฀ “relational฀ epistemologies.”฀ Inspired฀ by฀ Arturo฀ Yumbay,฀ an฀ Ecuadorian฀ politician฀ who฀ described฀ the฀ role฀ of฀ anthropologists฀who฀work฀with฀indigenous฀social฀movements฀as฀that฀ of฀acompañantes฀(companions,฀in฀a฀dialogic฀sense;฀see฀Yumbay฀2001),฀ I฀ see฀ relational฀ epistemologies฀ as฀ a฀ situated฀ knowledge฀ position฀ (see฀ Haraway฀1991).฀That฀position฀assumes฀the฀historical฀contingency฀of฀ universal฀ categories฀ and฀ uses฀ them฀ in฀ dialogical฀ process฀ with฀ local฀ thought,฀while฀paying฀relentless฀and฀critical฀attention฀to฀processes฀of฀ translation฀between฀the฀two,฀thus฀rendering฀local฀knowledge฀visible.฀ Relational฀epistemologies฀work฀to฀cancel฀subject-object฀positions,฀and฀ upon฀interacting฀with฀their฀others฀as฀selves฀who฀speak,฀think,฀and฀know฀ (Salmond฀1995),฀they฀have฀the฀potential฀to฀create฀the฀conditions฀for฀the฀ emergence฀of฀anthropologies฀in฀the฀plural—skilled฀enough฀to฀overcome฀ Western฀singularity฀and฀become,฀collectively,฀a฀worldwide฀discipline.฀ Eventually,฀beyond฀its฀disciplinary฀boundaries,฀a฀world฀anthropologies฀ could฀communicate฀between฀Western฀disciplines฀and฀other฀knowledges,฀ considered฀such฀in฀their฀own฀right.

Concluding฀Remarks At฀the฀beginning฀of฀this฀chapter฀I฀said฀I฀would฀use฀José฀María฀Arguedas฀ to฀illustrate฀the฀politics฀of฀knowledge฀production฀as฀it฀emerged฀within฀ the฀Peruvian฀intellectual-political฀community.฀Yet฀I฀did฀not฀mean฀to฀ present฀a฀polarized฀situation,฀with฀Arguedas฀on฀one฀side฀and฀recalcitrant฀

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rationalists฀on฀the฀other.฀This฀is฀not฀the฀way฀hegemony฀works—and฀the฀ hegemony฀of฀Western฀knowledge฀practices฀is฀also฀apparent฀in฀Arguedas’s฀ work.฀For฀in฀spite฀of฀the฀epistemological฀challenge฀that฀his฀literature฀ represented,฀the฀process฀through฀which฀he฀crafted฀his฀anthropology฀was฀ full฀of฀intriguing฀tensions฀that฀reveal฀his฀compliance฀with฀reason,฀science,฀ and฀ the฀ social-academic฀ hierarchies฀ that฀ structured฀ Latin฀ American฀ society฀in฀the฀1960s฀and฀that฀linger฀today.฀In฀his฀correspondence฀with฀ anthropologists,฀he฀repeatedly฀regretted฀his฀“ignorance฀of฀theory”฀and฀ subordinated฀local฀anthropology฀to฀metropolitan฀centers฀of฀knowledge.฀ “Only฀those฀who฀have฀been฀seriously฀trained฀abroad฀can฀teach฀here,฀ can฀conduct฀scholarly฀institutions฀.฀.฀.฀The฀rest,฀like฀me,฀can฀do฀a฀little฀in฀ art,฀but฀in฀the฀sciences฀we’re฀pathetically฀dead,฀and฀some฀of฀us฀accept฀ remaining฀in฀our฀positions฀because฀there฀is฀no฀one฀better฀yet,”฀he฀wrote฀ in฀a฀letter฀in฀1966.23 This฀opinion฀belongs฀to฀the฀genealogy฀of฀knowledge฀against฀which฀ the฀ proponents฀ of฀ interculturalidad฀ have฀ rebelled.฀ Yet฀ the฀ dynamics฀ and฀ hierarchies฀ of฀ hegemonic฀ knowledge฀ continue฀ to฀ pervade฀ the฀ production฀of฀interculturalidad.฀Pamela฀Calla,฀a฀Bolivian฀anthropologist,฀ has฀described฀some฀conflicts฀at฀the฀Bolivian฀PROEIB฀College฀where฀she฀ teaches.฀Students,฀she฀says,฀have฀coined฀labels฀that฀attest฀to฀different฀ forms฀ of฀ being฀ indigenous,฀ which,฀ however,฀ highlight฀ the฀ tensions฀ of฀ being฀ “inferior”฀ in฀ a฀ modern฀ sense—that฀ is,฀ less฀ educated฀ or฀ less฀ masculine.฀For฀example,฀on฀one฀occasion฀the฀students฀classified฀themselves฀into฀“academics”฀and฀“fundamentalists.”฀Not฀surprisingly,฀the฀ academics฀positioned฀themselves฀as฀a฀superior฀group฀and฀were฀challenged฀ by฀the฀fundamentalists’฀self-identification฀as฀“more฀indigenous”฀and฀ therefore฀more฀masculine฀(Calla฀2002).฀Although฀the฀latter฀interpretation฀ challenges฀dominant฀stereotypes,฀whereby฀“women฀are฀more฀Indian”฀(de฀ la฀Cadena฀1991),฀it฀conforms฀to฀modern฀gender฀hierarchies.฀Similarly,฀ pressures฀to฀be฀both฀modern฀and฀indigenous฀are฀complex—as฀illustrated฀ in฀the฀following฀passage,฀by฀an฀indigenous฀leader฀whom฀I฀will฀keep฀ anonymous:฀“Sometimes฀I฀feel฀I฀am฀going฀crazy฀because฀I฀cannot฀think฀ like฀an฀Indian฀anymore.฀I฀fight฀for฀Indians฀among฀whites,฀and฀therefore฀ I฀have฀to฀think฀like฀them.฀I฀represent฀indigenous฀interests฀within฀state฀ institutions,฀but฀I฀have฀not฀been฀back฀in฀my฀village฀for฀three฀years.฀I฀ travel฀all฀over฀the฀place,฀and฀I฀know฀I฀am฀an฀Indian.฀But฀what฀kind฀of฀ an฀Indian?”฀(Oliart฀2002). Interculturalidad฀is฀not฀a฀smooth,฀let฀alone฀automatically฀successful,฀ process.฀For฀one,฀it฀has฀not฀eliminated฀the฀images฀of฀indigenous฀timelessness฀that฀academic฀Andeanism฀created฀in฀the฀region.฀One฀consequential฀ example฀illustrates฀the฀way฀such฀images฀still฀thrive฀among฀the฀powerful฀

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in฀ Peru.฀ In฀ 1984,฀ caught฀ in฀ war฀ between฀ the฀ Shining฀ Path฀ and฀ the฀ Peruvian฀ Army,฀ indigenous฀ peasants฀ from฀ the฀ village฀ of฀ Uchuraccay฀ (in฀ the฀ Ayacucho฀ region,฀ the฀ epicenter฀ of฀ the฀ violence)฀ collectively฀ killed฀ six฀ journalists฀ who฀ were฀ investigating฀ another฀ massacre฀ that฀ had฀taken฀place฀weeks฀earlier฀nearby.฀Reactions฀to฀the฀event฀included฀ colonial฀anti-Indian฀fears฀as฀well฀as฀paternalistic฀pro-Indian฀attitudes.฀ The฀government฀responded฀by฀nominating฀a฀commission฀to฀investigate฀ the฀massacre.฀Because฀the฀assassins฀were฀Indians,฀not฀modern฀Peruvian฀ citizens,฀ the฀ key฀ members฀ of฀ the฀ group—led฀ by฀ the฀ internationally฀ famous฀ Mario฀ Vargas฀ Llosa—were฀ two฀ anthropologists,฀ rather฀ than฀ lawyers฀as฀they฀would฀have฀been฀in฀a฀criminal฀investigation.฀Removing฀ the฀killers฀from฀history,฀the฀anthropologists฀explained฀that฀the฀Indians฀ had฀been฀moved฀to฀kill฀the฀journalists฀by฀a฀combination฀of฀ancestral฀ fears฀and฀cultural฀principles.24 The฀anthropologists฀who฀wrote฀the฀report฀are฀currently฀key฀advisors฀ in฀a฀governmental฀effort฀to฀transform฀Peru฀into฀a฀multicultural฀nation฀ compatible฀ with฀ the฀ economic฀ mission฀ of฀ neoliberalism.฀ From฀ this฀ perspective,฀Andeanist฀multiculturalism฀continues฀the฀legacy฀of฀earlier฀ acculturation฀ theories.฀ Indians฀ can฀ successfully฀ become฀ modernized฀ cholos.฀The฀current฀president,฀Alejandro฀Toledo—commonly฀called฀“el฀ Cholo฀ Toledo”฀ in฀ Peru—represents฀ this฀ possibility,฀ for฀ he฀ is฀ “an฀ exIndian฀with฀no฀complexes฀and฀the฀cool฀calculating฀mind฀of฀a฀Stanford฀ and฀Harvard฀academic,”฀who฀has฀the฀ability฀to฀“understand฀life฀from฀a฀ viewpoint฀rooted฀in฀analytic฀rigor฀and฀scientific฀information.”฀It฀may฀be฀ only฀a฀coincidence,฀but฀the฀author฀of฀the฀quoted฀lines฀is฀Álvaro฀Vargas฀ Llosa฀(2000:฀20),฀the฀son฀of฀Mario฀Vargas฀Llosa,฀the฀authority฀in฀the฀ aforementioned฀report.฀Mario฀Vargas฀Llosa฀is฀also฀the฀author฀of฀a฀book฀ titled฀La฀utopía฀arcaica฀(1996),฀in฀which฀he฀discusses฀Arguedas’s฀work฀ as฀an฀anachronistic฀desire,฀a฀reversal฀of฀history—and฀thus฀not฀only฀a฀ utopia,฀but฀an฀archaic฀one฀at฀that. In฀the฀1960s฀and฀1970s,฀historicist฀class฀analysis฀worked฀as฀a฀“prose฀ of฀ counterinsurgency”฀ that฀ excluded฀ indigenous฀ revolts฀ from฀ the฀ academically฀defined฀field฀of฀politics.฀At฀the฀turn฀of฀the฀twenty-first฀ century,฀liberal฀multiculturalism฀can฀work฀as฀an฀“antipolitics฀machine”฀ (see฀Ferguson฀1990)฀by฀including฀within฀the฀hegemony฀of฀liberalism— or฀ neoliberalism,฀ in฀ this฀ case—circumstances฀ that฀ might฀ reveal฀ and฀ thus฀politicize฀everyday฀narratives฀of฀“cultural”฀or฀“ethnic”฀exclusion.฀ The฀inclusive฀yet฀depoliticizing฀work฀of฀multiculturalism฀operates฀by฀ normalizing฀education.฀In฀Peru,฀for฀example,฀the฀scandal฀that฀might฀ otherwise฀ arise฀ from฀ having฀ a฀ cholo฀ as฀ president฀ of฀ the฀ country฀ is฀ canceled,฀or฀at฀least฀calmed,฀by฀references฀to฀Toledo’s฀training฀in฀the฀

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centers฀of฀reason,฀an฀indication฀of฀his฀adequacy฀as฀a฀modern฀politician.฀ Arguedas,฀through฀his฀intricately฀fictional฀Rendón฀Willka—and฀through฀ his฀own฀life—questioned฀normalization฀through฀education.฀He฀thus฀ rejected฀ the฀ everyday฀ habits฀ of฀ thought฀ of฀ his฀ peers฀ and฀ provoked฀ an฀ intellectual-political฀ scandal฀ that฀ the฀ counterinsurgent฀ prose฀ of฀ modernity฀could฀not฀control. Similarly฀scandalous฀are฀discussions฀of฀interculturalidad฀and฀the฀presence฀ of฀indigenous฀intellectuals฀in฀countries฀such฀as฀Guatemala,฀Ecuador,฀ and฀Peru.฀Siding฀with฀the฀scandalous฀(for฀it฀challenges฀the฀simplicity฀of฀ modernity)฀and฀inspired฀by฀Arguedas,฀I฀want฀to฀propose฀that฀inasmuch฀ as฀indigenous฀social฀movements฀articulate฀an฀alternative฀to฀modern฀ politics—and฀the฀nation-states฀they฀sustain—they฀have฀the฀potential฀to฀ transform฀the฀liberal฀empirical฀notion฀of฀“diversity”฀currently฀tolerated฀ in฀liberal฀multiculturalisms฀into฀political฀demands฀for฀the฀citizenship฀ of฀plural฀ontologies฀and฀their฀forms฀of฀knowledge.฀As฀a฀Western฀social฀ science฀enabled฀by฀non-Western฀locations,฀anthropology฀is฀in฀a฀position฀ to฀contribute฀to฀the฀visibility฀of฀other฀forms฀of฀knowledge.฀In฀order฀to฀do฀ that,฀an฀awareness฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀as฀a฀dialogical฀process฀ of฀translation—between฀the฀local฀and฀the฀universal,฀between฀histories฀ and฀History,฀between฀the฀singular฀and฀the฀general—is฀in฀order.

Notes 1.฀ I฀use฀Bakhtin’s฀(1981)฀notion฀of฀dialogue฀together฀with฀Foucault’s฀(1980)฀ genealogical฀perspective฀in฀order฀to฀avoid฀the฀linear฀historical฀narrative฀that฀ naturalizes฀the฀current฀geopolitics฀of฀knowledge. 2.฀ To฀formulate฀this฀notion,฀Quijano฀(1993)฀explained฀that฀an฀entwinement฀ existed฀ between฀ Eurocentric฀ forms฀ of฀ knowledge฀ and฀ current฀ forms฀ of฀ domination฀throughout฀the฀world.฀The฀roots฀of฀this฀power฀formation฀could฀ be฀ traced฀ back฀ to฀ the฀ sixteenth฀ century,฀ when฀ beliefs฀ in฀ the฀ superiority฀ of฀ Christianity฀ over฀ “paganism”฀ enabled฀ Europe฀ to฀ constitute฀ itself฀ as฀ the฀ epicenter฀ of฀ modernity,฀ allegedly฀ the฀ most฀ advanced฀ historical฀ moment฀ of฀ humanity.฀ Supported฀ by฀ a฀ Eurocentered฀ notion฀ of฀ linear฀ time,฀ the฀ power฀ that฀supported฀the฀conquest฀of฀the฀Americas฀and฀connected฀the฀“new”฀and฀ “old”฀ worlds฀ conditioned฀ a฀ production฀ of฀ knowledge฀ according฀ to฀ which฀ Americans฀ occupied฀ the฀ past฀ and฀ lacked฀ what฀ Europeans฀ had:฀ civilization฀ and฀ reason.฀ Installed฀ in฀ the฀ discipline฀ of฀ history,฀ this฀ conceptual฀ alchemy,฀

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which฀relentlessly฀and฀pervasively฀reproduced฀the฀image฀that฀Europe฀was฀the฀ future฀of฀non-European฀populations,฀survived฀decolonizing฀movements฀and฀ continued฀to฀inform฀dominant฀ways฀of฀knowing. 3.฀ Influenced฀ by฀ readings฀ of฀ Spengler’s฀ The฀ Decline฀ of฀ the฀ West—which฀ reached฀ Latin฀ American฀ readers฀ through฀ the฀ Spaniard฀ Ortega฀ y฀ Gasset’s฀ Revista฀ de฀ Occidente฀ (Valcárcel฀ 1981)—Indo-Americanists฀ proposed฀ that฀ their฀ “ideological฀ and฀ philosophical฀ liberation฀ from฀ trans-Atlantic฀ domination”฀ was฀ to฀ be฀ epistemologically฀ inspired฀ by฀ “a฀ spiritual฀ attitude฀ sympathetic฀ to฀ the฀past”฀(García฀1937:฀33). 4.฀ The฀ most฀ prominent฀ proponent฀ of฀ this฀ regional-cum-nationalist฀ community฀ was฀ José฀ Vasconcelos,฀ credited฀ with฀ having฀ invented฀ the฀ Raza฀ Cósmica—the฀leading฀slogan฀of฀the฀Mexican฀nation-building฀project฀known฀ as฀mestizaje.฀The฀Peruvian฀Víctor฀Raúl฀Haya฀de฀la฀Torre฀founded฀the฀Acción฀ Revolucionaria฀ Americana฀ (later฀ to฀ become฀ APRA,฀ an฀ important฀ populist฀ Peruvian฀party)฀in฀1924฀while฀in฀Mexico,฀where฀he฀worked฀as฀a฀personal฀aid฀ to฀Vasconcelos,฀then฀minister฀of฀education.฀In฀turn,฀Haya฀de฀la฀Torre฀was฀a฀ conspicuous฀supporter฀of฀the฀anti-imperial฀struggles฀of฀César฀Augusto฀Sandino฀ in฀ Nicaragua,฀ and฀ both฀ subscribed฀ to฀ Vasconcelos’s฀ brainchild,฀ Indoamérica.฀ Similarly,฀from฀the฀other฀end฀of฀the฀continent,฀the฀Argentinean฀Ricardo฀Rojas฀ crafted฀the฀image฀of฀“Eurindia,”฀suggesting฀a฀regional฀identity฀built฀from฀the฀ encounter฀between฀indigenous฀American฀and฀European฀traditions,฀imported฀ to฀ Argentina฀ by฀ colonial฀ Spaniards฀ and฀ by฀ Italian,฀ Spanish,฀ and฀ English฀ immigrants฀in฀the฀early฀twentieth฀century. 5.฀ According฀ to฀ Beals฀ (1953),฀ Robert฀ Redfield,฀ then฀ at฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Chicago,฀coined฀the฀term฀acculturation฀after฀his฀visits฀to฀Mexico฀in฀the฀1920s.฀ Similarly,฀Melville฀Herskovitz,฀another฀of฀Boas’s฀students฀and,฀like฀him,฀interested฀in฀African฀Americans,฀used฀the฀term฀upon฀returning฀from฀fieldwork฀in฀ Surinam,฀ where฀ he฀ might฀ have฀ come฀ in฀ contact฀ with฀ Caribbean฀ notions฀ of฀ métissage฀and฀negritude.฀He฀was฀working฀with฀Redfield฀at฀Chicago฀at฀that฀time฀ (Beals฀1953). 6.฀ Also฀ in฀ 1936,฀ Redfield,฀ Herskovitz,฀ and฀ Ralph฀ Linton฀ wrote฀ “A฀ Memorandum฀for฀the฀Study฀of฀Acculturation”฀(Beals฀1953). 7.฀ Among฀the฀first฀to฀contest฀the฀notion฀was฀Fernando฀Ortiz.฀Acculturation,฀ he฀opined,฀simplified฀the฀complex฀cultural฀give฀and฀take฀that฀had฀characterized฀ Latin฀ American฀ society฀ since฀ the฀ arrival฀ of฀ the฀ Spaniards.฀ The฀ mixture฀ was฀ transcultural—it฀ operated฀ in฀ multiple฀ directions฀ as฀ the฀ Latin฀ American฀ indigenous,฀ Spanish,฀ and฀ black฀ cultures฀ changed฀ interdependently฀ (Coronil฀ 1995;฀Ortiz฀1995฀[1947];฀Rama฀1982).฀Although฀some฀literary฀critics฀used฀the฀ notion฀of฀transculturación฀to฀conceptualize฀Arguedas’s฀position,฀Ortiz’s฀concept฀ maintained฀“the฀notion฀of฀levels฀of฀cultural฀development”฀(Coronil฀1995:฀xix)฀ that฀Arguedas’s฀experience฀and฀writings฀opposed.

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฀ 8.฀ Also฀ as฀ a฀ consequence฀ of฀ the฀ popularity฀ of฀ “culture฀ areas”฀ (and฀ illustrative฀ of฀ the฀ notion’s฀ international฀ influence),฀ the฀ Instituto฀ Francés฀ de฀ Estudios฀Andinos฀was฀founded฀in฀1948,฀with฀Alfred฀Métraux฀as฀an฀important฀ authority. ฀ 9.฀ Created฀ in฀ the฀ early฀ 1960s฀ by฀ a฀ group฀ of฀ elite฀ sociologists,฀ anthropologists,฀ historians,฀ philosophers,฀ and฀ economists,฀ the฀ Instituto฀ de฀ Estudios฀ Peruanos฀was฀among฀the฀first฀institutions฀to฀seek฀and฀receive฀private฀funding.฀ It฀was฀peculiar฀in฀that฀it฀combined฀the฀legacy฀of฀Indigenismo฀with฀cuttingedge฀dependency฀theory.฀The฀elite฀social฀position฀of฀its฀members,฀along฀with฀ their฀leftist฀penchant,฀made฀the฀institute฀an฀influential฀organization,฀central฀in฀ the฀development฀of฀the฀social฀sciences฀in฀Peru.฀Luis฀E.฀Valcárcel,฀John฀Murra,฀ and฀José฀Matos฀Mar—all฀figures฀related฀to฀the฀Mexican฀hub฀of฀inter-American฀ anthropology—were฀members฀of฀the฀institute. 10.฀ To฀ control฀ the฀ turmoil—and฀ modernize฀ the฀ countryside—the฀ state฀ responded฀with฀development฀plans฀to฀“integrate฀the฀indigenous฀population,”฀ in฀which฀anthropologists,฀foreign฀and฀local,฀participated฀profusely.฀The฀bestknown฀efforts฀were฀the฀Cornell-Vicos฀project฀and฀the฀Plan฀de฀Integración฀de฀ la฀ Población฀ Aborígen.฀ With฀ the฀ participation฀ of฀ anthropologists฀ from฀ the฀ United฀States฀and฀Peru,฀these฀projects฀functioned฀in฀the฀1950s฀and฀1960s. 11.฀ See฀Quijano฀1980.฀The฀Peruvian฀sociologist฀Guillermo฀Rochabrún,฀in฀a฀ recent฀analysis฀of฀the฀roundtable฀discussion,฀mentioned฀that฀Quijano’s฀notion฀ of฀cholificación฀was฀first฀published฀in฀1964,฀under฀the฀title฀“La฀emergencia฀del฀ grupo฀cholo฀y฀sus฀implicaciones฀en฀la฀sociedad฀peruana฀(esquema฀de฀enfoque฀ aproximativo)”฀(see฀Rochabrún฀2000:฀99–100). 12.฀ According฀to฀Guillermo฀Rochabrún,฀the฀quoted฀passage฀appeared฀in฀“El฀ movimiento฀campesino฀del฀Perú฀y฀sus฀líderes,”฀which฀was฀published฀in฀1965.฀ The฀same฀article฀was฀published฀later฀in฀Quijano฀1979. 13.฀ Aníbal฀Quijano,฀personal฀conversation,฀August฀2003. 14.฀ This฀is฀not฀an฀isolated฀perspective.฀For฀a฀similar฀evolutionary฀mindset,฀ see฀Bonilla฀1981. 15.฀ The฀words฀belong฀to฀Enrique฀Bravo฀Bresani,฀an฀engineer฀who฀attended฀ the฀mesa฀redonda฀discussion฀of฀Todas฀las฀sangres.฀He฀soon฀became฀an฀ideologue฀ of฀ the฀ revolutionary฀ military฀ government฀ that฀ in฀ 1968฀ issued฀ an฀ agrarian฀ reform฀law฀aimed฀at฀halting฀the฀rural฀turmoil. 16.฀ Among฀ the฀ critics฀ who฀ have฀ commented฀ on฀ the฀ phrase฀ “all฀ bloods”฀ are฀Rowe,฀Escajadillo,฀Cornejo฀Polar,฀Escobar,฀Lienhard,฀Spitta,฀Rama,฀Larsen,฀ Lambright,฀Moreiras,฀and฀Devine. 17.฀ The฀Uruguayan฀Angel฀Rama,฀for฀example,฀has฀likened฀Arguedas’s฀denial฀ of฀acculturation฀to฀the฀Cuban฀Ortiz’s฀earlier฀“transculturation.”฀But฀Arguedas’s฀ testimonial฀ suggestions฀ transcend฀ the฀ bidirectional฀ cultural฀ mixture฀ that฀ Ortiz฀defined฀as฀transculturation.฀While฀Ortiz’s฀notion฀altered฀the฀linearity฀of฀

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acculturation฀and฀argued฀for฀the฀cultural฀specificity฀of฀Cuba,฀it฀yielded฀to฀the฀ superiority฀of฀Western฀civilization.฀Moreover,฀it฀was฀conceived฀from฀a฀Western฀ way฀of฀being฀and฀knowing. 18.฀ He฀told฀the฀poet฀Tomás฀Escajadillo฀this฀in฀1965฀(see฀Escajadillo฀1970). 19.฀ In฀being฀more฀at฀ease฀writing฀literature฀than฀anthropology,฀José฀María฀ Arguedas฀and฀Zora฀Neale฀Hurston฀were฀similar฀intellectual฀personalities. 20.฀ David฀Sobrevilla,฀personal฀communication,฀August฀2003. 21.฀ According฀ to฀ Carmen฀ María฀ Pinilla฀ (1994),฀ the฀ discussants฀ were฀ prey฀ to฀“a฀scientificist”฀position฀that฀prevented฀them฀from฀offering฀a฀“more฀open”฀ viewpoint฀and฀attitude.฀Arguedas’s฀two฀most฀prominent฀opponents฀were฀considered฀to฀be฀among฀the฀“most฀serious”฀representatives฀of฀the฀nascent฀social฀ sciences฀(Pinilla฀1994:฀107). 22.฀ This฀ passage฀ is฀ quoted฀ from฀ the฀ website฀ http://www.aymaranet.org/ thoa7.html. 23.฀ The฀letter฀was฀addressed฀to฀his฀dear฀friend฀Alejandro฀Ortiz฀Rescaniere,฀ who฀ was฀ studying฀ in฀ Paris฀ under฀ the฀ direction฀ of฀ Claude฀ Lévi-Strauss,฀ an฀ almost฀unknown฀figure฀in฀Peruvian฀anthropology฀circles฀in฀the฀1960s฀(Ortiz฀ Rescaniere฀1996:฀209). 24.฀ That฀these฀“timeless฀Indians”฀were฀seasonal฀laborers฀on฀coffee฀plantations,฀ that฀ they฀ made฀ weekly฀ trips฀ to฀ nearby฀ towns฀ to฀ purchase฀ rice,฀ sugar,฀ kerosene,฀and฀cigarettes,฀that฀their฀sons฀and฀daughters฀were฀servants฀in฀the฀ city,฀and฀that฀they฀were฀unfortunate฀actors฀in฀the฀war฀between฀the฀state฀and฀ the฀Shining฀Path฀were฀absent฀in฀the฀report.

e l e v e n

A Time and Place beyond and of the Center Australian Anthropologies in the Process of Becoming

Sandy Toussaint

“A

merican฀anthropology’s฀obviously฀the฀best,฀it’s฀so฀big!”฀exclaimed฀ an฀ Australian฀ postgraduate฀ student฀ fresh฀ from฀ attending฀ an฀ American฀Anthropological฀Association฀conference.฀While฀his฀observation฀ made฀ explicit฀ (among฀ other฀ things)฀ the฀ privileging฀ of฀ quantity฀ over฀ quality,฀his฀enthusiasm฀also฀endorsed฀a฀view฀that฀anthropology฀was฀ represented฀ by,฀ and฀ measured฀ primarily฀ against,฀ a฀ powerful฀ matrix฀ or฀“center.”฀The฀meta-message฀was฀that฀anthropologies฀elsewhere฀or฀ otherwise,฀ including฀ those฀ in฀ postcolonial฀ Australia,฀ were฀ unevenly฀ positioned.฀ In฀ this฀ chapter฀ I฀ contemplate฀ the฀ problems฀ involved฀ in฀ circumventing฀such฀a฀claim,฀and฀I฀consider฀(at฀what฀might฀be฀described฀ as฀the฀other฀end฀of฀the฀spectrum)฀the฀use฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀ beyond฀“the฀center”฀of฀its฀own฀production.฀The฀example฀of฀an฀Australian฀ native฀title฀land฀claim฀helps฀to฀illuminate฀an฀analysis฀that฀rests฀on฀the฀ hybridity฀of฀Australian฀anthropologies฀in฀the฀process฀of฀becoming.1

Anthropology฀in฀a฀Time฀and฀Place฀beyond฀“the฀ Center” Without฀wishing฀to฀privilege฀structural฀or฀oppositional฀analyses,฀but฀ keen฀to฀provide฀a฀contextual฀beginning,฀I฀suggest฀that฀Australia฀can฀be฀ broadly฀understood฀as฀both฀urban฀and฀remote,฀dry฀and฀waterlogged,฀ densely฀ and฀ sparsely฀ populated,฀ and฀ culturally฀ plural฀ and฀ singular.฀

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Depending฀on฀one’s฀vantage฀point฀and฀knowledge,฀Australia฀may฀also฀ be฀described฀as฀both฀resource฀rich฀and฀impoverished,฀socially฀heterogeneous฀ and฀ homogeneous,฀ politically฀ conservative฀ and฀ liberal,฀ and฀ touched฀ by฀ and฀ distant฀ from฀ the฀ connections,฀ disconnections,฀ and฀ disturbances฀evoked฀by฀globalization.2฀Within฀these฀broad฀descriptions,฀ Australia฀is,฀of฀course,฀also฀many฀shades฀in฀between. Australian฀ anthropology฀ replicates฀ the฀ parallels,฀ dislocations,฀ and฀ betweenness฀ evident฀ in฀ descriptions฀ of฀ Australia’s฀ people฀ and฀ their฀ cultural฀ landscape.฀ Although฀ anthropologists฀ share฀ epistemological,฀ methodological,฀theoretical,฀political,฀and฀ethnographic฀interests,฀they฀ also฀differ฀on฀a฀range฀of฀issues.3฀Reflected฀in฀their฀differences฀and฀tensions฀ are฀the฀uneven฀attention฀they฀pay฀to฀reflexivity฀in฀anthropology,฀their฀ debates฀over฀the฀discipline’s฀authority฀and฀purpose,฀and฀the฀increasing฀ pressure฀they฀feel฀to฀develop฀the฀commercial฀arm฀of฀anthropology. In฀spite฀of฀Australia’s฀geographical฀proximity฀to฀the฀Pacific฀and฀Southeast฀Asia,฀successive฀Australian฀governments฀have฀tended฀to฀be฀biased฀ toward฀the฀policies,฀ideologies,฀media,฀cultures,฀and฀governance฀of฀the฀ United฀States฀and฀the฀United฀Kingdom.4฀Anthropology฀was,฀and฀still฀ is฀to฀some฀extent,฀heavily฀influenced฀by฀theoretical฀developments฀in฀ those฀countries฀(Keen฀1999a).฀When฀understood฀from฀this฀perspective,฀ Australian฀anthropology,฀like฀the฀anthropologies฀of฀Europe,฀Latin฀America,฀ Asia,฀and฀the฀Middle฀East,฀can฀be฀interpreted฀as฀nonmetropolitan,฀or฀ distant฀from฀the฀“center”฀(see฀Eriksen฀and฀Nielsen฀2001:฀158),฀while฀ also฀heavily฀influenced฀by฀it.5 In฀Australia฀as฀elsewhere,฀the฀past฀twenty-five฀years฀have฀witnessed฀ significant฀ challenges฀ to฀ the฀ purpose,฀ style,฀ intellectual฀ trends,฀ and฀ claims฀of฀anthropology.฀The฀critique฀emerged฀from฀four฀broadly฀significant฀(but฀neither฀homogeneous฀nor฀necessarily฀exclusive)฀positions:฀ those฀of฀colonized฀groups฀and฀those฀of฀scholars฀in฀the฀fields฀of฀feminism,฀ postmodernism,฀ and฀ cultural฀ studies,฀ respectively.฀ A฀ key฀ point฀ of฀ inquiry฀focused฀on฀the฀relationship฀between฀indigenous฀groups฀and฀ anthropologists,฀ particularly฀ on฀ the฀ ways฀ in฀ which฀ Aboriginal฀ and฀ Islander฀women฀and฀men฀have฀been฀represented฀and฀by฀whom฀(Bell฀1993;฀ Langton฀1981,฀1993;฀Muecke฀1992;฀Peace฀1990;฀Toussaint฀1999). Perhaps฀ because฀ of฀ Australian฀ anthropology’s฀ nonmetropolitan฀ status,฀ its฀ tempered฀ response฀ to฀ the฀ crisis฀ of฀ representation,฀ and฀ Australia’s฀ shifting฀ political฀ landscape฀ regarding฀ reconciliation฀ over฀ the฀wounds฀of฀colonialism,฀certain฀fields฀of฀anthropology฀are฀thriving฀ in฀Australia.฀In฀a฀discipline฀of฀many฀parts,฀anthropologists฀now฀work฀ as฀academic,฀applied,฀and฀consultant฀anthropologists.฀None฀of฀these฀ categories฀is฀self-contained.฀A฀number฀of฀academic฀anthropologists฀do฀

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consultancy฀work,฀and฀some฀consultant฀anthropologists฀are฀employed฀ as฀academics฀on฀a฀fixed-term฀basis฀in฀Australian฀universities฀(Practicing฀ Anthropology฀2001).฀Almost฀all฀compete฀for฀work฀within฀a฀private฀or฀ public฀marketplace.฀Anthropologists฀conduct฀research,฀teach,฀or฀both฀ in฀a฀range฀of฀settings,฀such฀as฀universities,฀community฀organizations,฀ government฀ and฀ nongovernment฀ agencies,฀ and฀ sectors฀ of฀ industry.฀ Depending฀on฀context,฀most฀of฀them฀employ฀research฀methods฀that฀ rely฀on฀the฀technologies฀of฀globalization,฀such฀as฀personal฀computers฀ for฀recording฀and฀analyzing฀data,฀the฀internet฀for฀literature฀searches,฀ and฀email฀exchanges฀with฀colleagues฀near฀and฀far. Largely฀as฀a฀result฀of฀government฀policies฀aimed฀at฀commercializing฀ the฀ tertiary฀ sector,฀ academic฀ anthropologists฀ have฀ been฀ drawn฀ into฀ increasingly฀intense฀competition฀for฀research฀grants฀and฀consultancies.฀ As฀Stephen฀Hill฀and฀Tim฀Turpin฀showed฀(1995:฀137–38),฀a฀“new฀enterprise฀ culture”฀ now฀ influences฀ the฀ administrative฀ structures฀ of฀ Australian฀ universities,฀ and฀ “grass-roots฀ involvement฀ and฀ faculty฀ debate฀ have฀ become฀increasingly฀marginalized฀in฀favor฀of฀managerial฀efficiency.”฀ The฀ effect฀ on฀ disciplines฀ such฀ as฀ anthropology฀ has฀ been฀ profound.฀ Under฀already฀demanding฀circumstances,฀academics฀are฀now฀required฀ to฀ write฀ time-consuming฀ applications฀ for฀ government฀ and฀ industry฀ research฀grants฀or฀to฀undertake฀short-฀or฀long-term฀consultancies. Consultancies,฀which฀Andrew฀Strathern฀and฀Pamela฀Stewart฀described฀ as฀resulting฀in฀the฀“contemporary฀transformation฀of฀applied฀anthropology”฀(2001:3;฀see฀also฀Gardner฀and฀Lewis฀1996),฀characterize฀much฀of฀ contemporary฀anthropology฀in฀Australia,฀especially฀in฀the฀field฀of฀native฀ title฀ land฀ claims.฀ Although฀ at฀ one฀ level฀ this฀ situation฀ has฀ improved฀ employment฀ prospects฀ for฀ graduates฀ in฀ anthropology฀ and฀ taken฀ the฀ discipline’s฀expertise฀beyond฀the฀academy,฀the฀growth฀in฀consultant฀ anthropology฀has฀also฀generated฀a฀certain฀disquiet฀about฀the฀discipline’s฀ ethos.฀Reasons฀for฀this฀unease฀stem฀largely฀from฀anthropology’s฀colonial฀ history,฀ the฀ awkward฀ relationship฀ between฀ applied฀ and฀ academic฀ or฀ theoretical฀anthropology,฀and฀ongoing฀considerations฀about฀anthropology’s฀ use฀ and฀ purpose฀ (Hamilton฀ 2002;฀ Keen฀ 1999a;฀ Stead฀ 2002;฀ Strathern฀ and฀ Stewart฀ 2001).฀ Although฀ encompassed฀ in฀ well-worn฀ debates,฀ many฀ of฀ which฀ have฀ been฀ raised฀ in฀ the฀ books฀ Reinventing฀ Anthropology฀(Hymes฀1974),฀Recapturing฀Anthropology฀(Fox฀1991),฀and฀ Anthropology฀beyond฀Culture฀(Fox฀and฀King฀2002),฀these฀important฀issues฀ continue฀to฀require฀examination฀in฀new฀circumstances,฀especially฀in฀ a฀ globalized฀ world฀ where฀ “the฀ pace฀ of฀ life฀ is฀ speeding฀ up”฀ and฀ “the฀ time฀taken฀to฀do฀things฀is฀becoming฀progressively฀shorter”฀(Inda฀and฀ Rosaldo฀2002:฀7).

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Jim฀Birckhead฀(1999)฀and฀Philip฀Moore฀(1999)฀each฀showed฀the฀effects฀ of฀ commercialization฀ and฀ time฀ frames฀ in฀ restricting฀ the฀ quality฀ of฀ anthropological฀practice.฀Drawing฀on฀the฀work฀of฀Erve฀Chambers฀(1991)฀ and฀John฀van฀Willigen฀(1991),฀Birckhead฀concentrated฀on฀the฀process฀ of฀ doing฀ “rapid฀ ethnography”฀ consultancies฀ in฀ Aboriginal฀ Australia.฀ He฀observed฀that฀even฀though฀brief฀field฀research฀may฀be฀adequate฀if฀ the฀work฀is฀“done฀well,฀and฀in฀a฀critically฀informed฀way,”฀especially฀in฀ the฀arena฀of฀project฀evaluation฀and฀assessment฀(1999:฀221),฀such฀an฀ approach฀has฀clearly฀resulted฀in฀an฀“epistemology฀of฀brief฀encounters”฀ (1999:฀198). Moore฀presented฀a฀slightly฀different฀view.฀Mindful฀of฀the฀shortage฀ of฀considered฀research฀time฀in฀the฀kinds฀of฀brief฀encounters฀Birckhead฀ described,฀ Moore฀ concluded฀ from฀ his฀ experience฀ as฀ a฀ consultant฀ in฀ Aboriginal฀cultural฀heritage฀that฀competition฀among฀anthropologists฀for฀ research฀contracts฀tended฀to฀drive฀the฀process.฀In฀such฀circumstances,฀ “less฀time฀remains฀for฀critical฀reflection฀on฀anthropological฀practice”฀ (Moore฀ 1999:฀ 249).฀ Inspired฀ by฀ Arturo฀ Escobar฀ (1991,฀ 1995),฀ Moore฀ invited฀ other฀ anthropologists฀ to฀ “subject฀ the฀ [consultancy]฀ process฀ to฀critical฀examination฀to฀identify฀and฀expose฀how฀this฀development฀ encounter฀ shapes฀ anthropological฀ practices฀ and฀ representations฀ of฀ Aboriginal฀heritage”฀(1999:฀250).฀In฀a฀similar฀vein,฀and฀also฀referring฀ to฀Australia,฀Ian฀Keen฀(1999a:฀54)฀lamented,฀“What฀kind฀of฀information฀ an฀anthropologist฀can฀and฀should฀produce฀for฀particular฀purposes฀or฀ what฀effect฀it฀may฀have฀is฀seldom฀discussed฀in฀depth.” Writing฀as฀Australian฀anthropologists฀employed฀by฀AusAID฀to฀work฀on฀ “development”฀projects฀in฀Southeast฀Asia,฀Jocelyn฀Grace฀(1999:฀124–40)฀ and฀ Jim฀ Taylor฀ (1999:฀ 141–61)฀ expressed฀ similar฀ anxieties.6฀ Taylor’s฀ work฀in฀northern฀Thailand฀led฀him฀to฀offer฀a฀critique฀of฀development฀ discourse,฀especially฀with฀respect฀to฀projects฀that฀“ignore฀local฀conditions฀ and฀historical฀forces”฀(1999:฀154).฀Calling฀for฀anthropologists฀to฀devote฀ attention฀to฀alternative฀interventionist฀processes,฀Taylor฀revealed฀a฀clear฀ need฀for฀more฀“localised฀or฀micro฀ethnographic฀studies฀concerned฀with฀ development฀discourses฀and฀practices”฀(1999:฀157).฀Grace,฀who฀focused฀ on฀health฀projects฀on฀Lombok,฀Indonesia,฀echoed฀similar฀themes,฀but฀ she฀also฀posited฀that฀“some฀development฀projects฀benefit฀local฀people฀ regardless฀of฀how฀flawed฀the฀epistemological฀ground฀from฀which฀they฀ have฀ grown”฀ (1999:฀ 138).฀ Referring฀ to฀ her฀ work฀ as฀ a฀ consultant฀ on฀ an฀AusAID฀“child฀survival฀project,”฀where฀the฀women฀among฀whom฀ she฀worked฀“took”฀what฀they฀wanted฀from฀the฀project฀and฀“ignored”฀ or฀“rejected’฀what฀they฀did฀not฀want฀(1999:฀139),฀Grace฀claimed฀that฀ anthropologists฀who฀act฀as฀consultants฀in฀development฀are฀continually฀

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affected฀ by฀ the฀ “damned฀ if฀ you฀ do,฀ damned฀ if฀ you฀ don’t”฀ dilemma฀ (1999:฀124). The฀views฀expressed฀by฀Birckhead,฀Keen,฀and฀Moore฀about฀Australia,฀in฀ conjunction฀with฀those฀of฀Grace฀and฀Taylor฀as฀Australian฀anthropologists฀ engaged฀in฀sponsored฀development฀projects฀in฀Indonesia฀and฀Thailand— and฀others,฀such฀as฀Hill฀and฀Turpin฀and฀Strathern฀and฀Stewart,฀commenting฀ generally฀ on฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ commercial฀ enterprise฀ (via฀ consultancies,฀ research฀ grants,฀ and฀ competitive฀ tenders)—represent฀ significant฀contemporary฀themes.฀These฀themes฀might฀be฀conceptualized฀ under฀ four฀ headings:฀ the฀ driving฀ of฀ research฀ by฀ powerful฀ economic฀ networks;฀the฀limitations฀of฀“brief฀encounters”;฀the฀overlooking฀of฀local฀ knowledge฀and฀regional฀histories฀in฀research฀projects;฀and฀the฀lack฀of฀time฀ to฀reflect฀on฀fieldwork฀findings฀and฀their฀consequences.฀It฀also฀appears฀ that,฀in฀some฀projects฀at฀least,฀communities,฀individuals,฀or฀families฀ may฀benefit฀as฀a฀result฀of฀long-term฀or฀delayed฀anthropological฀research฀ and฀ that฀ “rapid฀ ethnography”฀ suits฀ some฀ topics฀ better฀ than฀ others฀ (Birckhead฀1999).฀These฀themes฀reflect฀a฀spectrum฀of฀anthropological฀ practices,฀theories,฀and฀knowledges฀and฀represent฀the฀different฀contexts,฀ times,฀and฀places฀in฀which฀anthropological฀engagements฀occur. Moore,฀Taylor,฀and฀others฀whom฀I฀have฀not฀mentioned฀participate฀in฀ a฀public฀critique฀of฀anthropology,฀especially฀with฀respect฀to฀ambiguous฀ or฀contradictory฀outcomes฀for฀the฀persons฀and฀communities฀among฀ whom฀they฀work.฀But฀much฀of฀this฀critique฀occurs฀within฀established฀ anthropological฀frameworks฀and฀networks,฀such฀as฀in฀texts,฀via฀the฀internet,฀and฀in฀conference฀venues฀where฀anthropologists฀converse฀among฀ themselves.฀ These฀ productive฀ exchanges฀ are฀ vital฀ to฀ the฀ discursive฀ health฀of฀the฀discipline.฀At฀the฀same฀time,฀it฀is฀clear฀that฀anthropological฀ knowledge฀is฀not฀always฀produced฀for฀the฀sole฀benefit฀of฀anthropologists฀ or฀for฀study฀within฀the฀discipline.฀One฀of฀the฀most฀challenging฀issues฀ that฀ continues฀ to฀ affect฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ Australia฀ is฀ the฀ question฀ of฀how฀to฀translate฀different฀forms฀of฀knowledge฀from฀one฀relational฀ context฀to฀another.

The฀Anthropology฀of฀Native฀Title While฀globalization฀and฀pressure฀to฀commercialize฀the฀discipline฀have฀ had฀their฀effects,฀increasing฀interest฀in฀studying฀anthropology฀and฀working฀as฀an฀anthropologist฀have฀also฀emerged฀in฀response฀to฀changes฀in฀ Australia’s฀legal฀and฀moral฀history.฀The฀most฀significant฀of฀these฀dates฀ to฀ 1992,฀ when฀ the฀ Australian฀ High฀ Court฀ handed฀ down฀ a฀ decision฀ generally฀known฀as฀Mabo฀v.฀Commonwealth฀(No.฀2).฀The฀Mabo฀decision฀

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acknowledged฀prior฀Aboriginal฀and฀Islander฀rights฀and฀interests฀in฀land,฀ or฀ “native฀ title.”฀ Focused฀ primarily฀ on฀ a฀ small฀ island฀ in฀ the฀ Torres฀ Straits,฀the฀decision฀established฀the฀principles฀whereby฀future฀native฀ title฀claims฀on฀the฀Australian฀mainland฀might฀be฀made,฀and฀it฀rejected฀ the฀ legal฀ fiction฀ of฀ terra฀ nullius,฀ which฀ had฀ underpinned฀ Australia’s฀ colonial฀history฀for฀more฀than฀two฀centuries฀(Bartlett฀1993;฀Fingleton฀ and฀ Finlayson฀ 1995;฀ Henderson฀ and฀ Nash฀ 2002;฀ Keon-Cohen฀ 2001;฀ Mantziaris฀and฀Martin฀2000;฀Sutton฀1998). The฀Mabo฀decision฀represented฀the฀first฀time฀that฀a฀form฀of฀land฀title฀ had฀been฀constructed฀around฀indigenous฀notions฀of฀property฀ownership฀ (Langton฀ 2000).฀ Indigenous฀ peoples,฀ with฀ supporting฀ evidence฀ from฀anthropological฀data,฀now฀have฀to฀prove฀that฀they฀have฀a฀right฀to฀ claim฀native฀title.฀That฀an฀individual฀or฀group฀can฀show฀a฀continuing฀ connection฀with฀the฀land฀consistent฀with฀traditional฀indigenous฀use,฀or฀ that฀rights฀in฀land฀have฀been฀conferred฀by฀customary฀law,฀is฀essential฀ to฀the฀requirements฀of฀native฀title฀law. Broadly฀translated฀into฀legislation฀in฀1993฀as฀the฀Native฀Title฀Act,฀the฀ Mabo฀decision฀ultimately฀generated฀the฀establishment฀of฀a฀mediating฀ body,฀the฀National฀Native฀Title฀Tribunal฀(NNTT),฀to฀hear฀Australia-wide฀ claims.7฀Hundreds฀of฀mainland฀native฀title฀claims฀have฀been฀lodged฀with฀ the฀NNTT,฀and฀some฀have฀been฀mediated฀or฀directed฀to฀the฀Federal฀Court฀ or฀the฀High฀Court฀in฀Canberra,฀Australia’s฀capital฀city.฀Only฀thirty-one฀ claims฀have฀been฀either฀wholly฀or฀partially฀successful,฀and฀amendments฀ made฀ to฀ the฀ act฀ in฀ 1998฀ have฀ weakened฀ its฀ potential.8฀ According฀ to฀ Keen฀(1999b:฀2),฀under฀the฀Native฀Title฀Act,฀claimants฀must฀show฀that฀ native฀title฀“is฀held฀by฀some฀kind฀of฀community฀or฀group;฀the฀group฀ must฀ have฀ genealogical฀ connections฀ with฀ the฀ community฀ or฀ group฀ which฀occupied฀the฀country฀[meaning฀“land”฀in฀an฀Australian฀context]฀ in฀question฀at฀the฀time฀of฀the฀establishment฀of฀British฀sovereignty฀and฀ have฀substantially฀maintained฀its฀connection฀with฀the฀country;฀[and]฀ the฀laws฀and฀customs฀through฀which฀title฀is฀framed฀must฀constitute฀a฀ tradition,฀if฀a฀changing฀one.” By฀ recognizing฀ indigenous฀ land฀ tenure฀ laws฀ and฀ by฀ leading฀ to฀ a฀ tribunal฀in฀which฀native฀title฀claims฀could฀be฀mediated,฀the฀High฀Court’s฀ 1992฀decision฀also฀enhanced฀employment฀opportunities฀for฀anthropologists.฀Cross-disciplinary฀research฀has฀flourished,฀and฀anthropologists,฀ historians,฀ and฀ linguists฀ often฀ undertake฀ fine-grained฀ ethnographic,฀ linguistic,฀and฀historical฀research฀for฀the฀common฀purpose฀of฀claim฀preparation฀and฀presentation฀in฀native฀title฀proceedings฀(Toussaint฀2004).฀ Promoted฀also฀by฀the฀tertiary฀sector’s฀“push”฀to฀compete฀for฀research฀ grants,฀consultancies,฀and฀competitive฀tenders,฀cross-disciplinary฀work฀

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is฀ not฀ without฀ its฀ problems,฀ especially฀ when฀ the฀ ethical฀ codes฀ and฀ methods฀of฀certain฀disciplines฀conflict. Anthropological฀involvement฀includes฀ethnographic฀research฀with฀ indigenous฀traditional฀owners,฀cultural฀mapping,฀the฀recording฀of฀genealogies,฀ and฀ the฀ preparation฀ of฀ detailed฀ reports฀ that฀ will฀ be฀ lodged฀ with฀the฀tribunal฀or฀other฀relevant฀court.฀Associated฀activity฀includes฀ peer-reviewing฀reports,฀giving฀expert฀witness฀testimony,฀and฀advising฀ indigenous,฀industry,฀and฀government฀organizations.฀Anthropologists฀ may฀also฀be฀instrumental฀in฀the฀way฀a฀report฀is฀reviewed฀by฀tribunal฀ personnel฀ or฀ members฀ of฀ the฀ judiciary.฀ As฀ key฀ actors฀ in฀ native฀ title฀ discourse,฀ anthropologists฀ have฀ developed฀ extensive฀ knowledge฀ of฀ indigenous฀ land฀ tenure฀ systems฀ throughout฀ Australia฀ and฀ provided฀ important฀policy฀advice฀to฀indigenous฀and฀other฀organizations. Anthropologists฀ may฀ also฀ be฀ employed฀ full-time฀ or฀ as฀ consultants฀ by฀organizations฀that฀oppose฀a฀native฀title฀or฀cultural฀heritage฀claim.฀ Such฀ organizations฀ include฀ those฀ related฀ to฀ sectors฀ of฀ the฀ mining฀ industry,฀government฀departments,฀the฀fishing฀industry,฀farming,฀and฀ developers. That฀the฀anthropology฀of฀native฀title฀claims฀has฀generated฀advantages฀ for฀some฀anthropologists฀is฀without฀question.฀It฀is฀less฀clear฀that฀the฀ discipline฀ as฀ a฀ whole฀ or฀ native฀ title฀ claimants฀ generally฀ have฀ been฀ advantaged.฀Proving฀that฀native฀title฀has฀not฀been฀extinguished,฀for฀ example,฀ and฀ that฀ cultural฀ connections฀ to฀ land฀ and฀ sites฀ have฀ been฀ maintained฀ and฀ reproduced฀ over฀ time฀ has฀ been฀ difficult฀ for฀ those฀ claimants฀on฀whom฀colonization฀and฀dispossession฀have฀taken฀their฀ greatest฀toll.฀Consideration฀of฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀native฀title฀claim฀helps฀ to฀explain฀this฀point.

The฀Yorta฀Yorta฀Claim The฀ Yorta฀ Yorta฀ Aboriginal฀ Community฀ v.฀ Victoria฀ native฀ title฀ claim฀ was฀lodged฀in฀the฀Victoria฀Division฀of฀the฀Federal฀Court฀of฀Australia฀ and฀heard฀by฀Justice฀Olney฀in฀1998.9฀Olney฀ruled฀that฀the฀claimants,฀ anthropologists,฀and฀linguists฀had฀produced฀insufficient฀evidence฀to฀show฀ that฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀continued฀to฀hold฀customary฀rights฀in฀accordance฀ with฀the฀Native฀Title฀Act.฀Claiming฀that฀“the฀tide฀of฀history฀had฀washed฀ away฀any฀real฀acknowledgement฀by฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀of฀their฀traditional฀ laws฀and฀customs,”฀Olney฀made฀minimal฀use฀of฀anthropological฀and฀ linguistic฀ evidence฀ and฀ appeared฀ skeptical฀ of฀ indigenous฀ testimony฀ (Auty฀and฀Patten฀2001;฀Bowe฀2002;฀Case฀1999).

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One฀criticism฀of฀Olney’s฀judgment฀was฀that฀he฀privileged฀as฀evidence฀ the฀ writings฀ of฀ an฀ amateur฀ historian฀ and฀ squatter,฀ E.฀ M.฀ Curr,฀ in฀ a฀ record฀ titled฀ “Recollections฀ of฀ Squatting฀ in฀ Victoria,”฀ first฀ published฀ in฀1883.฀In฀Olney’s฀view,฀present-day฀Yorta฀Yorta฀cultural฀beliefs฀and฀ practices฀should฀have฀conformed฀to฀those฀described฀by฀E.฀M.฀Curr฀in฀ the฀nineteenth฀century. Aware฀ of฀ the฀ precedent฀ that฀ Olney’s฀ ruling฀ set,฀ and฀ devastated฀ by฀ his฀failure฀to฀recognize฀their฀native฀title฀claim,฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta,฀in฀conjunction฀ with฀ anthropologists฀ and฀ lawyers,฀ appealed฀ the฀ decision.฀ They฀did฀so฀on฀the฀grounds฀that฀Olney฀had฀erred฀in฀law฀by฀applying฀ a฀biased฀test฀for฀deciding฀whether฀or฀not฀native฀title฀existed฀and฀by฀ finding฀against฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀primarily฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀Curr’s฀written฀ record.฀The฀appeal฀also฀contested฀Olney’s฀view฀that฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀were฀ required฀to฀show฀that฀they฀and฀each฀generation฀of฀their฀ancestors฀since฀ colonization฀had฀observed฀the฀same฀lifestyle,฀beliefs,฀and฀behaviors,฀ because฀such฀a฀view฀did฀not฀accord฀with฀the฀spirit฀of฀the฀Native฀Title฀ Act฀and฀anthropological฀analyses฀of฀cultural฀continuities฀within฀the฀ context฀of฀change. The฀ Australian฀ High฀ Court฀ heard฀ the฀ Yorta฀ Yorta’s฀ appeal฀ against฀ Olney’s฀decision฀but฀dismissed฀it฀in฀2002,฀by฀a฀five-to-two฀vote.฀The฀ judges฀concluded:฀“As฀their฀Honours฀found฀that฀the฀[Yorta฀Yorta]฀society฀ that฀had฀once฀observed฀traditional฀laws฀and฀customs฀had฀ceased฀to฀do฀ so,฀it฀was฀held฀that฀it฀no฀longer฀constituted฀the฀society฀out฀of฀which฀the฀ traditional฀laws฀and฀customs฀sprang.฀Therefore,฀any฀claim฀by฀the฀Yorta฀ Yorta฀people฀that฀they฀continued฀to฀observe฀laws฀and฀customs฀which฀ they,฀and฀their฀ancestors,฀had฀continuously฀observed฀since฀sovereignty฀ must฀be฀rejected”฀(Australian฀High฀Court฀2002). Elsewhere฀ in฀ the฀ judgment฀ (2002:฀ 96),฀ the฀ court฀ found฀ that฀ “the฀ forebears฀of฀the฀claimants฀had฀ceased฀to฀occupy฀their฀lands฀in฀accordance฀ with฀ traditional฀ laws฀ and฀ customs;฀ and฀ there฀ was฀ no฀ evidence฀ that฀ they฀continued฀to฀acknowledge฀and฀observe฀those฀laws฀and฀customs.”฀ Despite฀ Yorta฀ Yorta฀ knowledge,฀ beliefs,฀ and฀ practices,฀ and฀ despite฀ anthropological฀and฀other฀“expert”฀testimony฀in฀support฀of฀their฀claim,฀ the฀court’s฀decision,฀based฀on฀the฀evidence฀that฀came฀before฀it,฀was฀that฀ native฀title฀no฀longer฀existed. Preparation฀of฀the฀claim,฀followed฀by฀the฀original฀judgment฀and฀the฀ appeal,฀generated฀substantial฀anxiety฀over฀the฀possible฀fulfillment฀of฀ long-term฀land฀rights฀expectations฀for฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀claimants.฀At฀the฀ same฀time,฀a฀huge฀amount฀of฀work฀was฀generated฀for฀anthropologists,฀ linguists,฀ historians,฀ and฀ lawyers.฀ Much฀ of฀ the฀ anthropological฀ and฀ cross-disciplinary฀research฀on฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀claim฀was฀demanding,฀ politically฀intense,฀and฀undertaken฀in฀adversarial฀circumstances฀(Bowe฀

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2002;฀see฀also฀Choo฀2004฀and฀Christensen฀2004฀with฀respect฀to฀the฀ Miriuwung฀Gajerrong฀claim฀in฀Western฀Australia฀and฀Stead฀2002฀on฀ claims฀in฀the฀Northern฀Territory). Anthropologists฀researching฀native฀title฀claims฀also฀faced฀unique฀and฀ critical฀ questions,฀ including฀ questions฀ about฀ interpretations฀ of฀ continuity฀in฀cultural฀beliefs฀and฀practices;฀indigenous฀land฀tenure฀laws;฀ evidentiary฀matters;฀meanings฀attached฀to฀“tradition”;฀the฀veracity฀of฀ genealogical฀connections;฀and฀assertions฀about฀the฀effects฀of฀sovereignty.฀ The฀Yorta฀Yorta฀claim,฀like฀other฀native฀title฀claims,฀was฀therefore฀not฀ only฀about฀reconciliation฀and฀the฀recognition฀of฀indigenous฀knowledge฀ and฀land฀tenure฀laws;฀it฀was฀also฀about฀generating฀work฀and฀rich฀sources฀ of฀data฀for฀anthropologists.฀Somewhat฀ironically฀in฀a฀postmodern฀world฀ resistant฀to฀certain฀orthodox฀methodologies,฀native฀title฀discourse฀has฀ also฀served฀as฀a฀catalyst฀for฀the฀reintroduction฀of฀university฀courses฀on฀ the฀construction฀of฀kinship฀classifications,฀genealogies,฀and฀so฀on.฀In฀ this฀regard,฀anthropological฀and฀other฀research฀in฀the฀native฀title฀field฀ can฀be฀seen฀to฀have฀enhanced฀the฀enterprise฀aspirations฀of฀Australian฀ universities. The฀ discursive฀ and฀ pragmatic฀ benefits฀ of฀ native฀ title฀ research฀ for฀ anthropology฀are฀obvious.฀But฀while฀many฀anthropologists฀expressed฀ disappointment฀over฀Olney’s฀decision,฀most฀had฀another฀intellectual฀ space,฀another฀place,฀another฀claim,฀another฀time,฀and฀another฀inquiry฀ with฀which฀to฀displace฀that฀disappointment.฀The฀benefits฀of฀native฀title฀ research฀for฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀are฀less฀clear.฀Claimant฀Rochelle฀Patten฀made฀ clear฀the฀“fixity”฀of฀Yorta฀Yorta฀attachments฀to฀persons฀and฀places: My฀name฀is฀Rochelle฀Patten฀and฀I฀am฀a฀Yorta฀Yorta฀woman฀from฀Ulupna฀ through฀my฀grandmother.฀My฀totem฀and฀that฀of฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀people฀ is฀the฀long-necked฀turtle.฀My฀personal฀totem฀is฀the฀crow.฀The฀crow฀guides฀ me.฀I฀was฀born฀at฀Mooroopna฀Base฀Hospital฀which฀is฀on฀the฀Goulburn฀ River฀in฀Yorta฀Yorta฀territory.฀I฀have฀seen฀a฀copy฀of฀the฀map฀which฀shows฀ the฀Yorta฀Yorta฀land฀claimed฀in฀this฀native฀title฀claim฀and฀I฀say฀that฀this฀ is฀the฀traditional฀Yorta฀Yorta฀land.฀I฀know฀this฀because฀my฀mother฀told฀ me.฀Her฀father฀told฀her฀and฀his฀father฀told฀him.฀My฀relationship฀with฀ the฀land฀goes฀back฀to฀my฀grandfather฀and฀further.฀The฀land฀is฀part฀of฀me.฀ My฀responsibility฀to฀the฀land฀is฀to฀look฀after฀the฀land฀like฀a฀mother฀in฀ the฀way฀the฀elders฀looked฀after฀it.฀This฀is฀the฀responsibility฀of฀all฀Yorta฀ Yorta฀people.฀(Quoted฀in฀Auty฀and฀Patten฀2001:6)

The฀connectedness฀to฀land฀and฀family฀that฀Patten฀expressed,฀and฀the฀ disaffection฀she฀and฀other฀indigenous฀claimants฀felt,฀represents฀a฀kind฀of฀ disjuncture฀between฀the฀native฀title฀claimants฀and฀the฀anthropologists.฀

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But฀it฀also฀reveals฀a฀more฀powerful฀cultural฀and฀political฀rupture:฀the฀ fissure฀between฀anthropology,฀indigenous฀groups,฀and฀Australian฀courts฀ of฀law. The฀native฀title฀situation฀in฀Australia฀makes฀it฀plain฀that฀although฀a฀ critique฀can฀be฀made฀of฀unitary฀anthropological฀thought฀and฀practice,฀in฀ order฀to฀make฀room฀for฀its฀plural—anthropologies—there฀are฀powerful฀ places฀in฀which฀anthropological฀knowledge฀in฀its฀singular฀(let฀alone฀ plural)฀form฀continues฀to฀struggle฀for฀recognition฀outside฀the฀milieu฀of฀ its฀own฀creation฀and฀reproduction.฀The฀anthropologist฀David฀Trigger,฀ writing฀about฀the฀Croker฀Island฀native฀title฀claim฀(also฀known฀as฀Yarmirr฀ v.฀Northern฀Territory),฀encapsulated฀the฀problem฀this฀way: [T]he฀different฀worlds฀of฀discourse฀of฀law฀and฀anthropology฀are฀evident฀ [in฀ cases฀ such฀ as฀ Croker฀ Island].฀ For฀ lawyers,฀ their฀ pleadings฀ are฀ statements฀ that฀ are฀ “assertions”฀ to฀ be฀ proved฀ or฀ supported฀ by฀ something฀ called฀ “evidence”;฀ the฀ difficulty฀ is฀ that฀ .฀.฀.฀ anthropology฀ projects฀ such฀ “assertions”฀as฀conclusions฀that฀are฀already฀based฀upon฀interpretations฀ of฀action฀and฀speech,฀and฀.฀.฀.฀the฀way฀one฀justifies฀the฀conclusion฀is฀to฀ provide฀illustrative฀exemplary฀material.฀Our฀most฀general฀challenge฀.฀.฀.฀ lies฀in฀better฀explanation฀of฀the฀nature฀of฀research฀methodologies฀and฀ theories฀in฀anthropology฀.฀.฀.฀amidst฀legal฀colleagues฀whose฀own฀training฀ is฀ both฀ tantalizingly฀ familiar฀ and฀ frustratingly฀ distant฀ from฀ our฀ own.฀ (Trigger฀2004:฀33)

Anthropologies฀in฀the฀Process฀of฀Becoming The฀anthropology฀of฀native฀title฀is฀an฀example฀of฀a฀strong฀field฀of฀engagement฀that฀has฀generated฀significant฀intellectual฀interest฀and฀employment฀ for฀ Australian฀ anthropologists฀ in฀ recent฀ years.฀ That฀ anthropologists฀ (including฀some฀Aboriginal฀people,฀who฀increasingly฀train฀and฀work฀ as฀ anthropologists)฀ continue฀ to฀ be฀ engaged฀ in฀ native฀ title฀ claims,฀ despite฀their฀lack฀of฀success,฀reflects฀the฀continuation฀of฀the฀land฀rights฀ struggle฀in฀Australia฀as฀much฀as฀it฀reflects฀the฀difficulty฀anthropological฀ knowledge฀has฀in฀being฀heard฀beyond฀its฀own฀“center.” My฀ analysis฀ is฀ not฀ meant฀ to฀ imply฀ that฀ the฀ issues฀ will฀ disappear,฀ that฀native฀title฀discourse฀is฀beyond฀critique,฀or฀that฀Australian฀anthropologists฀ should฀ resist฀ challenges฀ to฀ the฀ reproduction฀ of฀ hegemonic฀ anthropology.฀But฀it฀does฀suggest฀that,฀at฀one฀end฀of฀the฀spectrum฀at฀ least,฀anthropologists฀must฀continue฀to฀work฀hard฀to฀convey฀complex฀ material฀to฀proponents฀of฀“other”฀forms฀of฀knowledge,฀including฀people฀ given฀power฀and฀authority฀by฀a฀sometimes฀hostile฀state.

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Many฀forms฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀and฀avenues฀for฀its฀production฀exist฀in฀postcolonial฀Australia,฀where฀emergent฀anthropologies฀ might฀be฀described฀as฀exhibiting฀“a฀turning฀of฀boundaries฀and฀limits฀ into฀ the฀ in-between฀ spaces฀ through฀ which฀ the฀ meanings฀ of฀ cultural฀ and฀ political฀ authority฀ are฀ negotiated”฀ (Bhabha฀ 1990:฀ 4).฀ Australian฀ anthropology฀ now฀ seems฀ to฀ sit฀ somewhat฀ precariously,฀ with฀ several฀ avenues฀ to฀ explore.฀ One฀ of฀ these฀ might฀ be฀ to฀ disturb฀ a฀ process฀ that฀ emphasizes฀an฀uncritical,฀unitary฀anthropology;฀another฀is฀to฀respond฀ to฀the฀pressures฀of฀economic฀demands฀and฀the฀danger฀of฀diminished฀ time฀for฀reflection;฀and฀still฀another฀is฀to฀integrate฀anthropology฀into฀ multidisciplinary฀formulations,฀a฀pathway฀that฀might฀lead฀to฀broader฀ public฀ debate฀ and฀ visibility.฀ Of฀ course฀ a฀ combination฀ of฀ these฀ three฀ avenues฀and฀other฀reconfigurations฀are฀also฀possible. Closure฀ on฀ debates฀ surrounding฀ internal,฀ interstitial,฀ or฀ external฀ anthropological฀knowledges฀is฀unlikely฀as฀anthropologists฀of฀and฀beyond฀ “the฀center”฀endeavor฀to฀develop฀theories฀and฀practices฀that฀incorporate฀ knowledge฀from฀other฀places฀in฀addition฀to฀developing฀an฀anthropology฀ of฀their฀own.฀I฀hope฀that฀in฀the฀process,฀a฀more฀self-conscious฀Australian฀ anthropology฀will฀discard฀aspirations฀to฀be฀the฀“biggest”฀or฀“the฀best,”฀ so฀that฀it฀can฀productively฀engage฀with฀the฀contradictions,฀ambiguities,฀ and฀complexities฀embodied฀in฀a฀globalized,฀world-anthropologies฀ethos.฀ Mikhail฀Bakhtin฀(1981),฀a฀critic฀of฀attempts฀to฀ideologically฀frame฀the฀ meanings฀of฀words,฀ideas,฀and฀actions,฀concentrated฀on฀the฀significance฀ of฀contextual฀and฀relational฀analyses.฀For฀Bakhtin,฀the฀dialogic฀approach฀ allowed฀consideration฀of฀the฀ways฀in฀which฀meaning฀and฀interpretation฀ changed฀over฀time.฀This฀sort฀of฀analysis฀is฀important฀for฀understanding฀ reformulations฀of฀Australian฀anthropologies. The฀ multiple฀ knowledges฀ presented฀ in฀ the฀ context฀ of฀ native฀ title฀ claims฀are฀rarely฀the฀kind฀of฀“evidence-knowledge”฀that฀is฀persuasive฀to฀ judges฀deliberating฀in฀Australian฀courts฀of฀law.฀While฀anthropologists฀ in฀ Australia฀ may฀ be฀ increasingly฀ open฀ to฀ deconstructing฀ hegemonic฀ anthropology฀and฀receptive฀to฀its฀transformations,฀we฀need฀also฀to฀be฀ mindful฀that฀such฀knowledge฀is฀often฀incomprehensible฀(perhaps฀for฀ a฀ variety฀ of฀ intentional฀ and฀ unintentional฀ reasons)฀ to฀ those฀ outside฀ the฀construction฀of฀that฀knowledge,฀including฀the฀groups฀with฀whom฀ anthropologists฀work—such฀as฀the฀Yorta฀Yorta,฀who฀continue฀to฀explore฀ ways฀to฀achieve฀the฀return฀of฀their฀land. The฀ sorts฀ of฀ multiple฀ knowledges฀ with฀ which฀ anthropologists฀ engage฀do฀not฀crystallize฀and฀mutate฀in฀a฀vacuum.฀In฀the฀case฀of฀native฀ title฀ claims,฀ where฀ the฀ emphasis฀ is฀ on฀ mediation฀ and฀ litigation,฀ anthropological฀ and฀ other฀ knowledges฀ must฀ be฀ both฀ accessible฀ and฀

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persuasive฀to฀adherents฀of฀a฀“different”฀body฀of฀knowledge฀and฀law.฀ That฀anthropologists฀conduct฀research฀across฀disciplinary฀boundaries฀ as฀they฀negotiate฀the฀complex฀demands฀of฀indigenous฀groups฀and฀the฀ state฀represents฀a฀slightly฀different฀yet฀no฀less฀important฀problem฀than฀ that฀of฀disturbing฀“the฀center”฀and฀contesting฀the฀power฀and฀authority฀ of฀an฀inherited฀periphery-center฀divide.

Notes 1.฀ My฀ experience฀ as฀ an฀ applied฀ and฀ academic฀ anthropologist฀ concerned฀ mainly฀ with฀ Aboriginal฀ Australia฀ and฀ my฀ strong฀ interest฀ in฀ epistemological฀ and฀ethical฀issues฀are฀reflected฀in฀this฀chapter.฀Although฀many฀of฀my฀colleagues฀ conduct฀ research฀ in฀ ethnographic฀ settings฀ outside฀ of฀ Australia,฀ particularly฀ in฀ Southeast฀ Asia฀ but฀ also฀ in฀ Venezuela,฀ Madagascar,฀ and฀ the฀ Middle฀ East,฀ anthropological฀work฀on฀Australian฀indigenous฀cultures฀remains฀a฀significant฀ field฀of฀inquiry.฀An฀increasing฀interest฀in฀doing฀“anthropology฀at฀home”฀and฀ some฀rapprochement฀with฀cultural฀studies฀is฀also฀evident฀among฀Australian฀ anthropologists,฀ as฀ is฀ a฀ resurgence฀ in฀ sociological฀ inquiry.฀ Current฀ topics฀ of฀ research฀ in฀ my฀ department฀ at฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Western฀ Australia฀ include฀ attachments฀to฀place,฀environmental฀issues,฀tourism,฀health,฀medicine,฀genetics,฀ ethnicity,฀ migration,฀ refugees,฀ urbanization,฀ globalization,฀ cultures฀ of฀ consumption,฀psychological฀and฀evolutionary฀anthropology,฀and฀legal฀cultures.฀ A฀ spectrum฀ of฀ approaches฀ embraces฀ postcolonialism,฀ poststructuralism,฀ and฀more฀orthodox฀ethnographic฀and฀theoretical฀frameworks.฀Any฀of฀these฀ emphases฀might฀lead฀to฀a฀slightly฀different฀interpretation฀of฀Australian฀anthropology฀from฀the฀one฀I฀present฀here. 2.฀ Though฀ not฀ focused฀ on฀ Australia,฀ Bhabha฀ (1990),฀ Featherstone฀ (1995),฀ Appadurai฀(2002),฀and฀Ferguson฀(2002)฀are฀among฀those฀who฀have฀explored฀ the฀ complex฀ interplay฀ (connections฀ and฀ disconnections)฀ between฀ local฀ conditions฀and฀globalization,฀including฀the฀hybridization฀that฀emerges฀when฀ the฀two฀collide.฀The฀extent฀to฀which฀indigenous฀groups฀in฀Australia฀have฀been฀ affected฀by฀globalization฀is฀unclear,฀although฀Michaels฀(2002)฀discussed฀how฀ the฀desert-living฀Warlpiri฀of฀Central฀Australia฀related฀to฀Hollywood฀videos฀in฀ a฀way฀that฀rendered฀the฀videos฀both฀analogous฀and฀meaningful฀to฀their฀own฀ history฀and฀circumstances. 3.฀ For฀an฀example฀of฀divergent฀views฀among฀Australian฀anthropologists,฀see฀ Brunton฀1995฀and฀1996,฀Tonkinson฀1997,฀and฀Bell฀1998,฀works฀that฀present฀

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a฀ range฀ of฀ anthropological฀ positions฀ on฀ the฀ “Hindmarsh฀ Island฀ dispute”฀ in฀ South฀Australia.฀The฀website฀http://www.library.adelaide.edu.au/gen/H_Island฀ contains฀findings฀from฀the฀1995฀South฀Australian฀Royal฀Commission. 4.฀ Paul฀ Keating,฀ Australia’s฀ former฀ Labor฀ prime฀ minister,฀ was฀ unusual฀ in฀ stressing฀Australia’s฀interest฀in฀developing฀stronger฀social,฀cultural,฀and฀political฀ ties฀with฀parts฀of฀Asia฀and฀the฀Pacific,฀in฀addition฀to฀trade-based฀ties.฀As฀Watson฀ (2002:฀77)฀explained,฀“Keating฀wanted฀to฀keep฀the฀US฀in฀the฀neighbourhood,฀ but฀ he฀ did฀ not฀ want฀ Australia฀ to฀ be฀ either฀ a฀ spoke฀ of฀ American฀ policy฀ or฀ a฀ cheerleader.฀ He฀ wanted฀ collective฀ dialogue฀ in฀ the฀ [Asia-Pacific]฀ region,฀ and฀ he฀wanted฀Australia฀involved฀in฀it.”฀Keating฀and฀the฀Labor฀Party฀lost฀power฀ to฀ a฀ conservative฀ government฀ in฀ 1996.฀ The฀ Liberal-Coalition,฀ led฀ by฀ Prime฀ Minister฀Howard,฀has฀not฀developed฀the฀close฀regional฀ties฀encouraged฀under฀ Keating. 5.฀ Taking฀relative฀population฀sizes฀into฀account,฀the฀demographics฀of฀the฀ discipline฀are฀revealing.฀The฀professional฀body฀of฀the฀Australian฀Anthropological฀ Society฀ (AAS)฀ consists฀ of฀ around฀ 290฀ members฀ in฀ the฀ categories฀ of฀ fellows฀ and฀ ordinary,฀ unsalaried,฀ and฀ retired฀ members,฀ in฀ comparison฀ with฀ 10,000฀ members฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀Association฀(AAA),฀2,000฀members฀ of฀ the฀ European฀ Association฀ of฀ Social฀ Anthropologists,฀ and฀ 1,000฀ members฀ of฀ the฀ British฀ Association฀ of฀ Social฀ Anthropologists฀ (AAS฀ Secretariat฀ 2002;฀ Eriksen฀and฀Nielsen฀2001:฀158). 6.฀ The฀term฀development฀anthropology฀is฀rarely฀used฀in฀Australian฀anthropology.฀ Sometimes฀it฀is฀rejected฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀its฀associations฀with฀colonialism฀and฀in฀ response฀to฀critiques฀of฀the฀term.฀Most฀anthropologists฀working฀in฀Australia฀ identify฀themselves฀as฀doing฀“applied”฀or฀“practical”฀work. 7.฀ Before฀passage฀of฀the฀Native฀Title฀Act,฀the฀land฀entitlements฀of฀Australian฀ indigenous฀groups฀had฀not฀been฀recognized฀at฀a฀national฀level,฀despite฀decades฀ of฀ agitation฀ (including฀ some฀ by฀ anthropologists).฀ Several฀ state-฀ or฀ territorybased฀ pieces฀ of฀ legislation฀ existed,฀ the฀ most฀ significant฀ being฀ the฀ Northern฀ Territory’s฀Aboriginal฀Land฀Rights฀Act฀of฀1976. 8.฀ The฀NNTT฀was฀unable฀to฀provide฀figures฀for฀the฀number฀of฀claims฀lodged฀ since฀its฀inception.฀The฀figures฀presented฀here฀refer฀only฀to฀native฀title฀claims฀ in฀ which฀ the฀ NNTT฀ found฀ that฀ native฀ title฀ continued฀ to฀ exist฀ and฀ to฀ have฀ meaning฀for฀indigenous฀claimants.฀The฀areas฀in฀question฀varied฀markedly฀in฀ size,฀and฀some฀decisions฀are฀currently฀under฀appeal. 9.฀ The฀Yorta฀Yorta฀native฀title฀claim฀is฀one฀of฀a฀number฀of฀claims฀on฀which฀ indigenous฀claimants,฀anthropologists,฀lawyers,฀historians,฀and฀linguists฀have฀ worked฀ together.฀ Other฀ claims฀ include฀ the฀ Wik฀ claim฀ (1996),฀ in฀ which฀ the฀ Australian฀High฀Court฀ruled฀that฀the฀grant฀of฀a฀nonexclusive฀pastoral฀lease฀in฀ Queensland฀ did฀ not฀ extinguish฀ native฀ title,฀ and฀ both฀ titles฀ could฀ co-exist— although฀ the฀ rights฀ of฀ the฀ pastoralist฀ would฀ prevail฀ if฀ a฀ conflict฀ of฀ interest฀

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emerged;฀ the฀ Croker฀ Island฀ claim฀ (2001),฀ in฀ which฀ the฀ High฀ Court฀ ruled฀ that฀native฀title฀extended฀to฀the฀sea฀but฀did฀not฀grant฀indigenous฀claimants฀ exclusive฀ possession฀ of฀ sea฀ areas;฀ the฀ Miriuwung฀ Gajerrong฀ claim฀ (1998– 2002),฀ in฀ which฀ the฀ High฀ Court฀ ruled฀ for฀ partial฀ extinguishment฀ of฀ native฀ title;฀and฀the฀De฀Rose฀Hill฀claim฀(2002),฀in฀which฀native฀title฀was฀found฀to฀be฀ extinguished฀(the฀website฀www.nntt.gov.au฀provides฀details).

t w e l v e

Official Hegemony and Contesting Pluralisms Shiv Visvanathan

I In฀their฀current฀discussion฀of฀center-periphery฀models฀in฀anthropology,฀ researchers฀must฀be฀sensitive฀to฀problems฀of฀intellectual฀production.฀ Center฀ and฀ periphery฀ are฀ no฀ longer฀ frozen฀ geographies฀ but฀ have฀ been฀ rendered฀ fluid฀ by฀ the฀ protean฀ nature฀ of฀ diasporic฀ flows.฀ Yet฀ a฀ scholar฀ working฀ in฀ the฀ periphery฀ might฀ be฀ caught฀ in฀ a฀ time฀ warp.฀ When฀ world฀ revolutions฀ are฀ announced฀ at฀ the฀ center,฀ he฀ feels฀ like฀ Rip฀Van฀Winkle,฀a฀belated฀entrant฀into฀an฀already฀established฀issue.฀If฀ you฀mention฀world฀anthropology฀in฀India฀nowadays,฀you฀are฀referred฀ to฀Veena฀Das’s฀monumental฀Oxford฀Companion฀to฀Sociology฀and฀Social฀ Anthropology฀(2003).฀ It฀is฀a฀fascinating฀effort฀to฀compile฀a฀set฀of฀texts฀ in฀order฀to฀create฀a฀textbook฀and฀evolve฀a฀consensus,฀both฀Indian฀and฀ diasporic,฀about฀social฀anthropology.฀It฀captures฀the฀normal฀science฀of฀ anthropology฀at฀its฀best.฀But฀the฀trouble฀with฀monuments฀is฀that฀they฀ quickly฀become฀statues.฀In฀criticizing฀them,฀one฀feels฀like฀an฀unofficial฀ sparrow,฀especially฀when฀what฀one฀conceives฀of฀as฀balletlike฀movements฀ are฀caught฀in฀frozen฀positions. Moving฀from฀discourse฀to฀institutions,฀we฀have฀Partha฀Chatterjee’s฀slim฀ but฀equally฀magisterial฀survey฀of฀the฀social฀sciences฀in฀India,฀sponsored฀ by฀the฀Social฀Science฀Research฀Council฀in฀New฀York฀(Chatterjee฀2002).฀ Chatterjee’s฀orchestrated฀effort฀to฀understand฀the฀institutional฀structure฀ of฀social฀science฀is฀a฀superbly฀cosmopolitan฀work฀and฀is฀bound฀to฀affect฀ policy฀and฀syllabi฀in฀years฀to฀come. Yet฀the฀problem฀of฀center฀and฀periphery฀is฀reflected฀in฀the฀nature฀of฀ these฀two฀works.฀Das฀teaches฀at฀Johns฀Hopkins฀University;฀Chatterjee฀ 239

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serves฀ every฀ year฀ at฀ Columbia฀ University.฀ Both฀ are฀ sensitive฀ people,฀ yet฀ neither฀ meditates฀ on฀ her฀ or฀ his฀ location฀ or฀ particular฀ mode฀ of฀ intellectual฀ production.฀ Chatterjee’s฀ article฀ could฀ easily฀ be฀ entitled฀ “Key฀Clubs฀in฀the฀Social฀Sciences,”฀so฀closely฀interconnected฀were฀his฀ sources฀of฀information. The฀irony฀of฀the฀center-periphery฀reflection฀is฀that฀this฀very฀problematic฀ might฀itself฀be฀inherited,฀and฀even฀marginal฀reflections฀might฀actually฀ represent฀the฀virtual฀marginality฀of฀floating฀professionals฀in฀a฀globalized฀ world.฀What฀do฀you฀do฀when฀your฀problem฀and฀your฀problematic฀are฀ themselves฀creations฀of฀the฀center?฀What฀do฀you฀add฀when฀influential฀ reflections฀are฀already฀in฀print,฀one฀insisting฀it฀is฀a฀handbook฀and฀the฀ other฀ occupying฀ space฀ as฀ a฀ policy฀ statement?฀ One฀ cannot฀ disparage฀ these฀efforts.฀These฀are฀outstanding฀intellectual฀maps,฀but฀in฀speaking฀ of฀the฀territories฀of฀the฀mind,฀one฀can฀invent฀a฀different฀geography,฀a฀ wishful฀space฀closer฀to฀one’s฀own฀autobiography. Anthropology฀ is฀ in฀ many฀ ways฀ the฀ product฀ of฀ a฀ dissenting฀ and฀ eccentric฀imagination,฀a฀subject฀perpetually฀quarreling฀with฀itself.฀What฀ I฀hope฀to฀do฀in฀this฀chapter฀is฀to฀look฀at฀“world฀anthropology”฀and฀ “the฀politics฀of฀center฀and฀periphery”฀through฀dissenting฀lenses,฀but฀in฀ relation฀to฀official฀views.฀From฀such฀a฀perspective,฀center฀and฀periphery฀ become฀not฀parts฀of฀a฀reified฀anthropology฀of฀preemptive฀futures฀but฀ cards฀in฀a฀continuously฀shuffled฀intellectual฀pack,฀or฀performers฀in฀a฀ circus฀of฀epistemologies.฀What฀one฀senses฀then฀is฀not฀the฀hegemony฀ of฀imperial฀thought฀but฀the฀restlessness฀of฀the฀anthropological฀mind.฀I฀ want฀to฀try฀to฀link฀the฀marginal฀to฀the฀radical,฀dissenting,฀and฀eccentric฀ imaginations฀to฀redraw฀this฀cognitive฀geography. Anthropology฀in฀India฀can฀be฀read฀as฀a฀series฀of฀shifting฀scenarios.฀ The฀debate฀moves฀over฀a฀variety฀of฀axes,฀including฀the฀colonial,฀the฀ civilizational,฀ that฀ of฀ the฀ nation-state,฀ that฀ of฀ civil฀ society,฀ and฀ the฀ global.฀ Anthropology,฀ in฀ this฀ context,฀ becomes฀ not฀ only฀ an฀ official฀ discourse฀ summoning฀ and฀ inventing฀ certain฀ forms฀ of฀ “Foucauldian฀ practice”—from฀ the฀ census฀ and฀ the฀ survey฀ to฀ that฀ great฀ colonial฀ creation,฀the฀gazetteer—but฀also฀a฀compendium฀of฀alternative฀dreams.฀ Anthropology฀becomes฀a฀way฀not฀only฀of฀panopticonizing฀the฀other฀ but฀of฀inventing฀a฀variety฀of฀playful฀others.฀Juxtaposing฀colonialisms฀ as฀frames฀for฀anthropology,฀we฀have฀other฀colonialisms. Anthropology฀ in฀ India฀ is฀ confident฀ enough฀ to฀ go฀ beyond฀ the฀ ressentiment฀of฀orientalism฀to฀pluralize฀the฀colonizing฀perspective.฀One฀ must฀include฀within฀the฀standard฀narratives฀of฀colonialism฀the฀insights฀ of฀people฀who฀might฀be฀dubbed฀“the฀other฀colonialists.”฀They฀were฀not฀ conventional฀imperialists฀reading฀the฀colony฀as฀a฀plantation฀or฀even฀

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a฀culture฀to฀be฀preserved฀in฀museums.฀These฀other฀colonialists฀were฀ comparative฀sociologists฀at฀heart.฀They฀discerned฀trends฀the฀colonizer฀ had฀made฀recessive฀within฀himself฀and฀treated฀the฀colony฀as฀a฀site฀for฀ the฀reinvention฀and฀recovery฀of฀intellectual฀possibilities฀in฀education,฀ town฀planning,฀science,฀and฀politics.฀Not฀all฀British฀officials฀saw฀in฀India฀ a฀site฀to฀be฀surveyed฀and฀ruled.฀For฀many฀it฀was฀a฀theater฀for฀alternative฀ knowledges,฀experiments฀that฀had฀failed฀in฀the฀West.฀One฀thinks฀of฀ Patrick฀Geddes,฀the฀first฀professor฀of฀sociology฀at฀Bombay฀University,฀ who฀saw฀in฀India฀the฀possibilities฀of฀a฀post-Germanic฀university,฀and฀ Albert฀Howard,฀who฀saw฀in฀his฀anthropology฀of฀agriculture฀a฀theory฀ of฀a฀society฀based฀on฀a฀different฀attitude฀toward฀soils.฀One฀might฀even฀ invoke฀theosophist฀anthropology,฀with฀its฀dreams฀of฀childhood,฀which฀ worked฀toward฀a฀new฀reading฀of฀the฀Boy฀Scout,฀and฀of฀the฀occult฀child,฀ which฀drove฀new฀notions฀of฀pedagogy฀for฀disabled฀children. For฀many฀it฀was฀a฀theater฀for฀alternative฀knowledges,฀experiments฀ that฀ had฀ failed฀ or฀ turned฀ recessive฀ in฀ the฀ West.฀ I฀ emphasize฀ two฀ separate฀arguments฀here.฀First,฀the฀discourse฀of฀the฀other฀colonialisms฀ modified฀and฀created฀worlds฀parallel฀to฀the฀official฀space฀of฀colonial฀ anthropology.฀ While฀ official฀ anthropology฀ mimicked฀ the฀ orientalist฀ enterprise,฀participants฀in฀the฀other฀colonialism฀engaged฀in฀dialogue฀ with฀the฀sociological฀ideas฀of฀the฀Indian฀national฀movement.฀For฀every฀ Risley฀and฀Hutton฀there฀was฀a฀Patrick฀Geddes฀and฀an฀Annie฀Besant. Second,฀ the฀ affable฀ orientalism฀ of฀ Blavatsky,฀ Besant,฀ and฀ Allan฀ Octavian฀ Hume฀ was฀ met฀ by฀ the฀ hospitality฀ of฀ Indian฀ nationalism.฀ The฀ anthropological฀ confidence฀ of฀ the฀ nationalist฀ movement฀ must฀ be฀emphasized,฀especially฀when฀the฀nation-state฀today฀functions฀like฀ an฀ intellectual฀ corset.฀ Indian฀ nationalists,฀ even฀ while฀ attempting฀ to฀ overthrow฀the฀British,฀were฀always฀open฀to฀eccentric฀and฀dissenting฀ imaginations.฀ Indeed,฀ Indian฀ nationalism฀ itself฀ was฀ a฀ fascinating฀ anthropology฀of฀the฀other,฀an฀imagining฀that฀extended฀right฀up฀to฀the฀ debates฀of฀the฀constituent฀assembly฀functioning฀under฀the฀shadow฀of฀ the฀Partition.฀India฀was฀like฀a฀compost฀heap,฀perpetually฀chewing฀ideas,฀ in฀which฀nothing฀was฀lost฀or฀eternally฀defeated.฀Indian฀nationalism฀can฀ be฀seen฀as฀a฀dialogic฀framework฀for฀world฀anthropology,฀for฀in฀it฀the฀ Gandhian฀anthropology฀of฀the฀village฀contended฀with฀the฀traditionalist฀ aesthetic฀ imaginings฀ of฀ Ananda฀ Coomaraswamy฀ and฀ E.฀ B.฀ Havell฀ or฀ quarreled฀ with฀ the฀ occult฀ anthropology฀ of฀ the฀ theosophists฀ and฀ the฀ Leninist฀vision฀of฀scientists฀dreaming฀of฀a฀society฀based฀on฀the฀scientific฀ method฀(Nandy฀and฀Visvanathan฀1997;฀Visvanathan฀2001). Intellectual฀ historians฀ have฀ often฀ presented฀ these฀ approaches฀ as฀ separate฀intellectual฀grids,฀when฀instead฀they฀were฀the฀warps฀and฀wefts฀

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of฀a฀complex฀intellectual฀debate.฀It฀was฀a฀debate฀over฀questions฀such฀ as,฀What฀is฀the฀role฀of฀modern฀Western฀science฀in฀Indian฀civilization?฀ Can฀a฀dialogue฀between฀medical฀systems฀provide฀a฀different฀frame฀for฀ policy?฀Can฀India฀construct฀a฀post-Germanic฀university฀that฀embodies฀ a฀ different฀ idea฀ of฀ knowledge฀ and฀ not฀ only฀ reflects฀ an฀ Indian฀ style฀ but฀ also฀ makes฀ a฀ contribution฀ to฀ world฀ knowledge?฀ Bernard฀ Cohn฀ (1996)฀and฀other฀writers฀have฀emphasized฀the฀invention฀of฀colonial฀ knowledge,฀ from฀ Hinduism฀ to฀ colonial฀ law.฀ They฀ have฀ ignored฀ the฀ alternative฀circuses฀of฀debate฀that฀created฀other฀possibilities฀for฀science,฀ urbanism,฀tradition,฀technology,฀architecture,฀and฀agriculture.฀To฀use฀ more฀recent฀terms,฀if฀colonialism฀pretended฀to฀be฀a฀world฀system,฀then฀ Indian฀nationalism฀projected฀the฀possibilities฀of฀a฀world฀anthropology฀ with฀its฀ideas฀of฀pluralism,฀diversity,฀and฀dissent.฀To฀sense฀the฀power฀ and฀confidence฀of฀this฀dream,฀one฀need฀not฀go฀as฀far฀as฀Pannikar฀did฀ when฀he฀requested฀that฀we฀allow฀pockets฀of฀Goa฀and฀Pondicherry฀to฀ remain฀colonial฀so฀that฀we฀might฀continuously฀study฀the฀West฀in฀us.฀ To฀understand฀what฀anthropology฀is,฀one฀must฀not฀follow฀the฀official฀ “dictionary”฀level฀of฀discourse฀but฀must฀see฀the฀anthropological฀act฀as฀ a฀shifter—something฀that฀changes฀meanings฀as฀it฀moves฀from฀context฀ to฀context. With฀the฀coming฀of฀independence฀in฀India,฀the฀epistemic฀circus฀of฀ anthropology฀became฀more฀domesticated,฀more฀disciplinary,฀yet฀it฀was฀ still฀full฀of฀memories฀of฀another฀world฀of฀debates.

II The฀debates฀that฀began฀with฀independence฀centered฀on฀a฀set฀of฀simple฀ questions.฀Is฀sociology฀a฀discourse฀of,฀and฀oriented฀toward,฀the฀national฀ state,฀or฀can฀it฀mediate฀between฀civilization฀and฀nation?฀Is฀sociology฀ possible฀in฀a฀civilizational฀sense?฀Can฀one฀create฀a฀universalist฀sociology,฀ or฀is฀sociology฀a฀particularistic฀exercise฀tied฀to฀certain฀unique฀institutions?฀ Are฀sociological฀categories฀unique,฀universal,฀and฀translatable? These฀questions฀drew฀three฀sets฀of฀responses,฀each฀a฀fascinating฀way฀ of฀redefining฀the฀problem.฀Each฀response฀hyphenated฀sociology฀to฀a฀ different฀subject,฀suggesting฀that฀the฀answer฀to฀the฀question฀might฀lie฀ in฀the฀hybrid฀so฀created.฀The฀first฀and฀the฀most฀publicized฀answer฀was฀ that฀ of฀ the฀ French฀ Indologist฀ Louis฀ Dumont,฀ who฀ still฀ stands฀ larger฀ than฀life฀on฀the฀Indian฀scene.฀Dumont฀argued฀that฀the฀possibility฀of฀ a฀sociology฀of฀India฀lay฀in฀a฀closer฀cooperation฀between฀Indology฀and฀ social฀anthropology.฀The฀Dumontian฀problematic฀dominated฀Indian฀ sociology฀ and฀ triggered฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ most฀ cosmopolitan฀ debates฀ over฀

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the฀issue฀of฀a฀“sociology฀of฀India”฀(Bailey฀1959).฀The฀journal฀Dumont฀ established฀with฀David฀Pocock,฀Contributions฀to฀Indian฀Sociology,฀became฀ the฀dominant฀journal,฀displacing฀both฀the฀more฀quotidian฀Sociological฀ Bulletin฀and฀the฀more฀regional฀Eastern฀Anthropologist. The฀ debates฀ over฀ a฀ sociology฀ of฀ India฀ constitute฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ most฀ fascinating฀ archives฀ on฀ the฀ possibility฀ of฀ a฀ world฀ anthropology,฀ but฀ the฀terms฀of฀the฀debate฀and฀its฀“official”฀history฀marginalize฀two฀other฀ fascinating฀answers฀to฀the฀fundamental฀questions.฀Both฀came฀from฀the฀ most฀ heavily฀ intellectualist฀ school฀ of฀ the฀ time,฀ and฀ both฀ have฀ been฀ marginalized฀or฀forgotten.฀The฀style฀and฀debates฀of฀the฀Lucknow฀school฀ must฀be฀recovered,฀and฀I฀shall฀do฀so฀in฀two฀stages.฀First฀I฀outline฀the฀works฀ of฀D.฀P.฀Mukherjee฀and฀Radhakamal฀Mukherjee,฀and฀then฀I฀elaborate฀ the฀arguments฀of฀A.฀K.฀Saran.฀While฀the฀first฀two฀sociologists฀attempted฀ to฀purify฀and฀translate฀the฀economic฀vision฀of฀Marx฀as฀a฀sociological฀ enterprise,฀the฀third฀carried฀out฀a฀guerilla฀war฀against฀modernity฀and฀ the฀dreams฀of฀a฀universal฀Western฀sociology฀(Gupta฀1974;฀Joshi฀1986;฀ Madan฀1994). Members฀of฀the฀Lucknow฀school฀of฀economics฀and฀sociology฀took฀a฀ holistic฀view฀of฀sociology.฀Indeed,฀the฀very฀boundaries฀between฀today’s฀ economics,฀ sociology,฀ and฀ political฀ science฀ have฀ confined฀ them฀ to฀ oblivion,฀ for฀ their฀ sociology฀ constituted,฀ to฀ use฀ Albert฀ Hirschman’s฀ term฀(1981),฀virtually฀“essays฀in฀trespassing.”฀The฀Lucknow฀school฀is฀ remembered฀today฀for฀its฀three฀musketeers:฀Radhakamal฀Mukherjee,฀D.฀ P.฀Mukherjee,฀and฀D.฀N.฀Majumdar.฀Saran,฀younger฀than฀they,฀could฀be฀ seen฀as฀the฀spiritual฀D’Artagnan. The฀roots฀of฀the฀Lucknow฀school฀lay฀deep฀in฀the฀anticolonial฀national฀ awakening฀that฀exploded฀out฀of฀the฀Bengal฀renaissance฀as฀a฀literary฀and฀ political฀outpouring.฀The฀Lucknow฀vision฀saw฀social฀science฀as฀a฀theater฀ and฀a฀site฀for฀imagining฀a฀society฀struggling฀for฀national฀emancipation฀ and฀against฀backwardness฀and฀poverty.฀Tacitly,฀it฀was฀concerned฀with฀ the฀way฀Indian฀civilization฀and฀community฀responded฀to฀the฀nationalist฀ project฀of฀planned฀development.฀Its฀founder,฀Radhakamal฀Mukherjee,฀ noted: History฀ was฀ prized฀ by฀ me฀ at฀ the฀ beginning฀ of฀ my฀ educational฀ career฀ as฀ a฀ systematic฀ study฀ for฀ the฀ necessity฀ of฀ the฀ glory฀ of฀ India,฀ but฀ faceto-face฀contact฀with฀the฀misery,฀squalor฀and฀degradation฀of฀the฀slums฀ of฀ Calcutta฀ decided฀ my฀ future฀ interest฀ in฀ Economics฀ and฀ Sociology฀.฀.฀.฀ Ricardo,฀ Mill,฀ Marshall,฀ Walker,฀ Carver฀ were฀ not฀ concerned฀ with฀ the฀ problems฀of฀poverty฀at฀all,฀but฀did฀not฀these฀current฀textbooks฀of฀economics฀ formulate฀ certain฀ problems฀ that฀ required฀ understanding฀ and฀

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interpretation฀in฀order฀to฀analyze฀and฀alleviate฀Indian฀poverty?฀(Quoted฀ in฀Joshi฀1986:฀8)

What฀ Mukherjee฀ tried฀ to฀ create฀ at฀ Lucknow฀ was฀ sociology฀ as฀ an฀ institutional฀economics฀appropriate฀to฀Indian฀society.฀As฀a฀sociologist฀ of฀Indian฀culture,฀he฀argued฀that฀“the฀postulates฀of฀Western฀economics฀ were฀entirely฀different฀from฀those฀that฀could฀be฀deduced฀from฀a฀realistic฀ study฀ of฀ Indian฀ economic฀ life”฀ (Joshi฀ 1986:฀ 11).฀ Mahatma฀ Gandhi฀ approved฀of฀Mukherjee’s฀ideas฀as฀early฀as฀1917.฀Citing฀Mukherjee฀with฀ approval,฀Gandhi฀observed฀“that฀the฀principles฀of฀Western฀economics฀ could฀not฀be฀applied฀to฀Indian฀conditions฀in฀the฀same฀way฀[that]฀the฀ rules฀of฀grammar฀and฀syntax฀of฀one฀language฀could฀not฀be฀applicable฀ to฀another฀language”฀(Joshi฀1986:฀11). But฀the฀Indian฀nation-state฀was฀committed฀to฀planned฀development.฀ Mukherjee฀articulated฀a฀sociology฀that฀provided฀a฀civilizational฀ecological฀view,฀an฀antidote฀to฀the฀Eurocentric฀approach฀to฀Indian฀economics.฀ Embedded฀ in฀ the฀ strategy฀ of฀ the฀ Lucknow฀ school฀ were฀ two฀ approaches฀to฀sociology฀as฀a฀reinventing฀of฀economics.฀The฀first฀was฀ what฀P.฀C.฀Joshi,฀in฀his฀fond฀memoir,฀called฀an฀“Asian฀Exceptionalism,”฀ a฀conviction฀that฀“we฀can฀no฀more฀alter฀the฀economic฀institution฀of฀a฀ country฀than฀its฀language฀and฀thoughts”฀(Joshi฀1986:฀16).฀The฀second฀ was฀a฀vision฀of฀socialist฀transformation฀oriented฀to฀Asian฀conditions.฀ The฀latter฀struggle฀was฀articulated฀in฀the฀life฀and฀ideas฀of฀D.฀P.฀Mukherjee,฀ R.฀K.฀Mukherjee’s฀colleague.฀Joshi฀mentioned฀the฀difference฀in฀the฀two฀ men’s฀styles.฀Whereas฀Radhakamal฀Mukherjee฀was฀austere฀and฀simple,฀ D.฀P.฀Mukherjee฀was฀a฀pleasure-loving฀cosmopolitan฀who฀loved฀food,฀ cigarettes,฀and฀ideas,฀a฀coffee-house฀intellectual฀who฀was฀an฀authority฀ on฀music. D.฀ P.฀ Mukherjee฀ was฀ a฀ quintessential฀ Indian฀ intellectual฀ who฀ saw฀ in฀independence฀a฀challenge฀for฀intellectuals.฀He฀observed฀that฀“the฀ French฀dared฀in฀1789,฀the฀English฀in฀1683,฀the฀Germans฀in฀1848฀and฀ the฀Russians฀in฀1917.฀For฀the฀first฀time฀in฀several฀centuries,฀India฀has฀a฀ chance฀to฀dare”฀(Joshi฀1986:฀20).฀For฀D.฀P.฀Mukherjee,฀the฀issue฀was฀how฀ a฀civilization฀dares฀to฀change,฀with฀its฀blends฀of฀tradition฀and฀modernity.฀ Sociology฀for฀him฀was฀a฀collective฀biography฀of฀this฀exercise฀in฀change,฀ a฀challenge฀made฀particularly฀acute฀because฀of฀sociology’s฀affinity฀to฀ Marxism.฀Marxism฀was฀a฀dream฀of฀a฀world-transformative฀anthropology.฀ The฀question฀was,฀Could฀it฀blend฀with฀Indian฀civilization? D.฀ P.฀ Mukherjee฀ felt฀ that฀ Indian฀ Marxists฀ must฀ induce฀ a฀ creative฀ encounter฀with฀Indian฀civilization;฀indeed,฀he฀quoted฀Marx฀as฀saying฀ that฀“the฀deeper฀you฀go฀down฀to฀the฀roots,฀the฀more฀radical฀you฀become.”฀ In฀his฀“Man฀and฀Plan฀in฀India,”฀he฀wrote:

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Marxism฀has฀to฀creatively฀mediate฀between฀Western฀values฀and฀Indian฀ tradition.฀Thus฀it฀is฀that฀two฀systems฀of฀data฀are฀to฀be฀worked฀out.฀One฀is฀ the฀plan,฀with฀its฀basic฀Western฀values฀in฀experimentation,฀rationalism,฀ social฀accounting฀and฀in฀further฀Western฀values฀centering฀in฀or฀emerging฀ out฀ of฀ bureaucratization,฀ industrialization,฀ technology฀ and฀ increasing฀ urbanization.฀The฀other฀is฀not฀so฀much฀the฀Indian฀traditions฀as฀India’s฀ forces฀of฀conservation฀and฀powers฀of฀assimilation.฀At฀present฀they฀are฀ not฀ sharply฀ posed.฀ If฀ anything,฀ the฀ first฀ datum฀ is฀ gradually฀ becoming฀ ascendant฀.฀.฀.฀The฀second฀requisite฀is฀social฀action฀to฀push฀on฀with฀the฀ plan฀and฀to฀push฀it฀consciously,฀deliberately,฀collectively฀into฀the฀next฀ historical฀phase.฀The฀value฀of฀Indian฀traditions฀lies฀in฀the฀ability฀of฀their฀ conserving฀forces฀to฀put฀a฀brake฀on฀hasty฀passage.฀Adjustment฀is฀the฀end฀ product฀of฀the฀dialectical฀connection฀between฀the฀two.฀(Joshi฀1986:฀22)

D.฀ P.฀ Mukherjee฀ recognized฀ that฀ Marxism฀ was฀ the฀ most฀ powerful฀ critique฀of฀capitalism฀and฀exploitation฀but฀believed฀it฀was฀incomplete฀as฀ a฀theory฀of฀value.฀What฀Marxism฀needed฀was฀a฀“spiritual฀restlessness,”฀ a฀framework฀that฀Gandhi฀provided.฀Gandhi฀was฀opposed฀to฀modern฀ technological฀civilization฀because฀he฀saw฀it฀as฀a฀theory฀of฀both฀greed฀ and฀need.฀He฀was฀convinced฀that฀the฀increasing฀and฀large-scale฀use฀of฀ machinery฀was฀an฀engine฀of฀exploitation,฀and฀he฀opposed฀technology฀ because฀ it฀ represented฀ the฀ negation฀ of฀ normal฀ social฀ order,฀ which฀ in฀ Gandhi’s฀ view฀ was฀ based฀ on฀ the฀ principles฀ of฀ wantlessness฀ and฀ unpossessiveness.฀Mukherjee฀believed฀it฀was฀this฀that฀Marxism฀lacked,฀ because฀it฀rejected฀spiritual฀norms฀based฀on฀wantlessness฀and฀a฀code฀ of฀conduct฀founded฀on฀self-control฀and฀prayer. Mukherjee฀grappled฀with฀another฀profound฀difficulty฀that฀he฀could฀ not฀solve.฀It฀dealt฀with฀time,฀and฀as฀critics฀such฀as฀Saran฀and฀Dumont฀ have฀ pointed฀ out,฀ it฀ was฀ something฀ he฀ struggled฀ against฀ futilely.฀ Mukherjee฀pleaded฀poetically฀for฀“a฀concept฀of฀time฀that฀will฀not฀move฀ along฀one฀direction,฀[but]฀that฀will฀not฀be฀cyclical.฀It฀will฀be฀neither฀ Greenwich฀time฀nor฀the฀twinkle฀of฀Brahma’s฀eye.฀He฀hoped฀that฀with฀ this฀ change฀ from฀ transcendental฀ to฀ human฀ time,฀ philosophy฀ would฀ become฀one฀with฀history.”฀But฀as฀the฀ruthless฀Saran฀noted,฀“the฀new฀ concept฀of฀time฀he฀proposed฀is฀a฀little฀too฀eclectic,฀not฀to฀say฀elastic.”฀It฀ was฀difficult฀to฀imagine฀how฀D.฀P.฀Mukherjee฀visualized฀a฀nondirectional฀ time฀that฀was฀also฀noncyclical.฀The฀imperious฀Dumont฀noted฀this฀as฀ the฀unresolved฀problem฀in฀Mukherjee’s฀sociology.฀He฀pointed฀out฀that฀ “one’s฀recognition฀of฀the฀absence฀of฀the฀individual฀in฀traditional฀India฀ obliges฀one฀to฀admit฀with฀others฀that฀India฀has฀no฀history,฀for฀history฀ and฀the฀individual฀are฀inseparable;฀it฀follows฀that฀‘Indian฀civilization฀ is฀unhistorical฀by฀definition’”฀(quoted฀in฀Madan฀1994:฀16).

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D.฀ P.฀ Mukherjee’s฀ life,฀ like฀ his฀ anthropology,฀ remained฀ a฀ series฀ of฀ reluctances.฀Saran฀noted฀that฀the฀three฀world฀notes฀that฀beckoned฀to฀ him—Vedanta,฀Western฀liberalism,฀and฀Marxism—did฀not฀mix.฀T.฀N.฀ Madan,฀in฀his฀book฀Pathways฀ (1994:฀23),฀wondered฀what฀Mukherjee’s฀ autobiography฀would฀have฀looked฀like.฀I฀wonder฀what฀his฀prospective฀ sociology฀would฀have฀looked฀like. The฀Lucknow฀school฀lost฀out฀to฀the฀dreams฀of฀planned฀development.฀ It฀was฀the฀London฀School,฀not฀the฀Lucknow฀school,฀that฀dominated฀ independent฀India.฀D.฀P.฀Mukherjee฀and฀other฀sociologists฀like฀him฀were฀ seen฀as฀dreamers,฀coffee-house฀aficionados฀in฀the฀world฀of฀technocrats.฀I฀ shall฀explore฀A.฀K.฀Saran’s฀ideas฀in฀section฀IV฀while฀discussing฀the฀sociology฀ of฀ modernity;฀ space฀ does฀ not฀ permit฀ me฀ to฀ discuss฀ the฀ intellectual฀ styles฀of฀N.฀K.฀Bose฀and฀G.฀S.฀Ghurye.฀What฀I฀need฀to฀confront฀is฀the฀ sociological฀ manifesto฀ that฀ marginalized฀ their฀ sociologies.฀ We฀ come฀ now฀to฀the฀vision฀of฀sociology฀that฀Louis฀Dumont฀invented.

III If฀Max฀Mueller฀haunts฀Indology฀and฀the฀ghosts฀of฀Risley฀and฀Hutton฀ still฀stalk฀colonial฀anthropology,฀then฀Louis฀Dumont฀is฀the฀specter฀that฀ haunts฀Indian฀sociology.฀His฀Homo฀Hierarchicus฀(1980)฀is฀the฀greatest฀ masterpiece฀of฀modern฀Indian฀sociology.฀The฀magazine฀he฀inaugurated,฀ Contribution,฀determined฀the฀professional฀quality฀and฀the฀style฀of฀Indian฀ sociology.฀As฀critic,฀irritant,฀foil,฀opponent,฀benchmark,฀and฀ancestor,฀ Dumont฀triggered฀the฀fascinating฀“for฀a฀sociology฀of฀India”฀debate.฀But฀ Indian฀sociologists,฀unfortunately,฀often฀read฀only฀half฀of฀Dumont.฀They฀ often฀failed฀to฀complement฀his฀reading฀of฀India฀with฀his฀studies฀of฀the฀ West.฀So฀while฀Dumont฀was฀often฀deaf฀to฀Indian฀critiques,฀Indians฀were฀ equally฀one-sided฀in฀understanding฀his฀attempts฀to฀create฀what฀would฀ be฀called฀a฀comparative฀sociology฀along฀the฀lines฀of฀Weber. Louis฀Dumont฀initiated฀his฀studies฀of฀India฀as฀a฀mature฀scholar฀already฀ respected฀by฀Claude฀Lévi-Strauss฀(Madan฀1982:฀405–18).฀Dumont฀wanted฀ to฀go฀beyond฀an฀empirical,฀eclectic,฀or฀clerical฀India;฀he฀wanted฀an฀India฀ that฀could฀be฀understood฀as฀a฀theoretical฀orientation.฀He฀also฀wanted฀to฀ create฀an฀India฀that฀was฀an฀intellectual,฀civilizational฀other฀of฀the฀West.฀ Indeed,฀ he฀ viewed฀ India฀ in฀ civilizational฀ rather฀ than฀ societal฀ terms.฀ Civilizationally,฀one฀could฀deal฀with฀wholes฀at฀the฀level฀of฀values,฀and฀ such฀a฀perspective฀provided฀for฀comparisons.฀It฀was฀a฀vision฀of฀world฀ anthropology฀that฀escaped฀ethnocentrisms. One฀ can฀ understand฀ this฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ his฀ magnum฀ opus,฀ Homo฀ Hierarchicus,฀which฀was฀essentially฀a฀study฀of฀the฀caste฀system฀and฀its฀

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implications.฀It฀was฀a฀thought฀experiment฀on฀a฀grand฀intellectual฀scale;฀ it฀was฀not฀an฀ethnographic฀exercise฀or฀a฀historical฀study.฀For฀Dumont,฀ ethnography฀ and฀ history฀ were฀ only฀ instruments฀ of฀ elucidation.฀ He฀ complained฀that฀Western฀scholars฀saw฀the฀caste฀system฀through฀Western฀ ideologies฀and฀spectacles.฀As฀a฀result,฀the฀study฀of฀caste฀became฀a฀victim฀ of฀Western฀ethnocentricity.฀Caste฀was฀about฀inequality,฀but฀to฀oppose฀ it฀mechanically฀to฀the฀Western฀idea฀of฀equality฀was,฀though฀perhaps฀ politically฀ correct,฀ effete.฀ To฀ understand฀ caste,฀ one฀ had฀ to฀ exorcise฀ oneself฀of฀egalitarianism,฀individualism,฀and฀political฀economy.฀One฀ had฀to฀go฀beyond฀the฀simplicity฀of฀equality฀to฀the฀grand฀complexity฀ of฀hierarchy. I฀cannot฀go฀into฀the฀critique฀of฀Homo฀Hierarchicus฀but฀must฀now฀present฀ Dumont’s฀idea฀of฀a฀sociology฀of฀India.฀The฀essence฀of฀the฀approach,฀as฀ T.฀N.฀Madan฀noted฀(1982),฀was฀presented฀in฀his฀inaugural฀lecture฀at฀the฀ École฀Pratique฀des฀Hautes฀Études฀in฀1955฀and฀in฀an฀abridged฀version฀of฀ the฀lecture,฀with฀David฀Pocock฀playing฀Charles฀Lamb,฀in฀Contributions฀ to฀Indian฀Sociology฀(Dumont฀and฀Pocock฀1957).฀The฀two฀claimed฀that฀ “a฀sociology฀of฀India฀lies฀at฀the฀confluence฀of฀sociology฀and฀Indology.”฀ Such฀an฀approach฀would฀allow฀one฀to฀apprehend฀the฀unity฀of฀India฀in฀ a฀civilizational฀sense.฀That฀unity฀had฀to฀be฀theoretical฀and฀structural.฀It฀ should฀not฀be฀diverted฀by฀an฀emphasis฀on฀isolated฀features฀or฀stumble฀on฀ the฀phenotypical฀diversity฀that฀haunts฀superficial฀studies฀of฀India.฀Once฀ we฀grasp฀India฀foundationally,฀“the฀empirical฀diversity฀recedes฀into฀the฀ background฀and฀an฀almost฀monotonous฀similarity฀springs฀forth.” For฀Dumont,฀a฀sociology฀of฀India฀needed฀both฀the฀stranger฀and฀the฀ native.฀The฀stranger,฀as฀outsider,฀looks฀at฀social฀facts฀as฀things.฀Yet฀he฀ realizes฀that฀social฀facts฀are฀both฀things฀and฀not฀things฀and฀advocates฀a฀ dualistic฀study฀of฀Indian฀society฀from฀within฀and฀without.฀Duality฀led฀ to฀dialectics,฀and฀Dumont฀studied฀caste฀along฀with฀anti-caste,฀kingship฀ alongside฀the฀renouncer. The฀Dumontian฀project฀was฀seminal฀in฀its฀fruitfulness฀and฀the฀diversity฀ of฀critiques฀it฀generated.฀Indeed,฀the฀sociology-of-India฀debate฀continues฀ to฀this฀day,฀though฀it฀has฀narrowed฀in฀focus฀and฀fury.฀What฀began฀as฀a฀ debate฀over฀the฀politics฀of฀knowledge฀and฀the฀need฀to฀construct฀India฀ as฀something฀beyond฀an฀epistemic฀other฀for฀the฀West฀has฀sometimes฀ degenerated฀into฀a฀sociology฀of฀the฀profession฀in฀India.฀At฀its฀best฀it฀ produced฀the฀writings฀of฀Uberoi,฀Kantowsky,฀Madan,฀Saran,฀Khare,฀and฀ Marriot฀(see฀particularly฀Kantowsky฀1984;฀Khare฀1990;฀Uberoi฀1968).฀ It฀was฀open,฀dialogic,฀and฀hospitable.฀The฀first฀critiques฀of฀Dumont’s฀ work฀ held฀ that฀ his฀ was฀ a฀ Hindu-centric฀ sociology฀ that฀ had฀ no฀ place฀ for฀the฀Christian฀or฀the฀Muslim.฀In฀their฀search฀for฀a฀theoretical฀unity,฀

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Dumont฀and฀Pocock฀ignored฀the฀fact฀that฀the฀sociology฀of฀India฀must฀ also฀be฀a฀sociology฀of฀Muslims,฀Christians,฀Parsees,฀and฀Jews.฀Part฀of฀this฀ oversight฀stemmed฀from฀the฀fact฀that฀Dumont฀and฀Pocock฀posited฀unity฀ as฀a฀theoretical฀imperative฀rather฀than฀as฀an฀empirical฀fact.฀They฀wrote฀ that฀it฀was฀“essential฀that฀this฀unity฀be฀postulated฀from฀the฀outset,”฀ contending฀that฀“while฀this฀complicates฀our฀methods,฀it฀simplifies฀our฀ principles฀and฀our฀objectives.”฀Without฀this,฀they฀warned,฀“there฀will฀ be฀no฀sociology฀of฀India฀except฀in฀a฀vague฀geographic฀sense.” There฀was฀a฀second฀sense฀in฀which฀critics฀saw฀the฀Dumontian฀project฀ as฀partial.฀They฀saw฀it฀as฀“ahistorical,”฀as฀emphasizing฀the฀concerns฀of฀ a฀ traditional฀ rather฀ than฀ a฀ modern฀ India.฀ They฀ also฀ considered฀ that฀ Dumont฀ and฀ Pocock,฀ in฀ their฀ preoccupation฀ with฀ traditional฀ India,฀ completely฀ignored฀the฀growing฀importance฀of฀an฀increasingly฀developed฀ modern฀ India.฀ Their฀ vision฀ of฀ a฀ sociology฀ of฀ India฀ as฀ a฀ sociology฀ of฀ a฀traditional฀Indian฀society฀made฀them฀choose฀Indology฀rather฀than฀ history฀as฀a฀partner฀of฀sociology. Three฀other฀critiques฀were฀even฀more฀theoretically฀powerful.฀The฀first,฀ by฀J.฀P.฀S.฀Uberoi฀(1968),฀raised฀the฀necessity฀of฀a฀reciprocal฀sociology.฀ He฀ talked฀ of฀ an฀ Indian฀ thought฀ freed฀ from฀ its฀ colonial฀ influence—a฀ swaraj-ist,฀ or฀ “self-rule,”฀ thought—and฀ simultaneously฀ advocated฀ an฀ Indian฀reading฀of฀the฀West,฀not฀just฀as฀an฀example฀of฀countercoloniality฀ but฀as฀the฀beginning฀of฀a฀more฀playful฀universalism. D.฀Kantowsky฀(1984),฀while฀supporting฀Uberoi’s฀project฀of฀a฀swarajist฀ science,฀ offered฀ a฀ critique฀ from฀ a฀ different฀ angle.฀ He฀ supported฀ the฀ need฀ for฀ a฀ national฀ school฀ of฀ thought฀ to฀ reformulate฀ imported฀ questions฀and฀concepts.฀He฀examined฀the฀need฀for฀an฀Indian฀sociology฀ by฀leapfrogging฀through฀the฀Contributions฀debate.฀He฀asked฀rhetorically฀ whether฀advocacy฀for฀an฀Indian฀sociology฀meant฀that฀there฀was฀also,฀ for฀example,฀an฀Indian฀chemistry. F.฀G.฀Bailey฀(1959)฀raised฀the฀same฀issue฀in฀his฀critique฀of฀Dumont.฀ Criticizing฀what฀he฀dubbed฀Dumont’s฀insistence฀on฀the฀uniqueness฀of฀ Indian฀society,฀he฀held฀that฀“the฀unique฀is฀scientifically฀incomprehensible.฀ There฀can฀be฀no฀Indian฀sociology฀except฀in฀a฀vague฀geographic฀sense฀ and฀[no]฀more฀than฀there฀are฀distinctively฀Indian฀principles฀in฀chemistry฀ or฀biology”฀(Bailey฀1959:฀88–101).฀Bailey,฀a฀sociologist,฀was฀of฀course฀ unaware฀of฀the฀work฀of฀J.฀B.฀S.฀Haldane฀or฀C.฀V.฀Seshadri฀(1993),฀but฀ that฀is฀another฀essay. What฀Kantowsky฀challenged฀was฀Dumont’s฀idea฀of฀unity.฀He฀observed฀ that฀Dumont฀maintained฀that฀the฀unity฀of฀mankind฀manifested฀itself฀ in฀a฀unity฀of฀thinking฀and฀that฀Hindus,฀like฀all฀other฀people,฀thought฀ through฀ distinctive฀ opposites.฀ He฀ then฀ cited฀ Satish฀ Saberwal’s฀ work฀

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to฀show฀how฀the฀cellular฀universe,฀constituted฀around฀the฀normative฀ autonomy฀of฀the฀varnas฀(castes),฀appeared฀to฀accept฀a฀both-and฀rather฀ than฀ an฀ either-or฀ logic฀ (Saberwal฀ 1983:฀ 301–15).฀ It฀ was฀ exactly฀ this฀ capacity฀of฀Indian฀society฀to฀absorb฀layer฀upon฀layer฀of฀new฀codes,฀and฀ its฀corresponding฀ahistoric฀both-and฀logic,฀that฀Weber฀found฀difficult฀to฀ understand฀and฀tried฀to฀fit฀into฀the฀either-or฀logic฀of฀his฀Western-type฀ historical฀thinking฀and฀its฀Protestant฀model.฀A.฀K.฀Ramanujan฀offered฀ a฀playful฀version฀of฀this฀issue฀in฀his฀classic฀article,฀“Is฀There฀an฀Indian฀ Way฀of฀Thinking”฀(1999:฀41–55). Finally,฀ the฀ Dumontian฀ project฀ was฀ criticized฀ from฀ a฀ different฀ angle—from฀the฀world฀of฀modernity.฀As฀André฀Béteille฀remarked฀(1993),฀ “Dumont฀in฀fact฀has฀tried฀to฀vindicate฀a฀world฀that฀Indians฀have฀left฀ behind,฀not฀one฀they฀were฀trying฀to฀create.”

IV The฀ writings฀ of฀ A.฀ K.฀ Saran฀ provide฀ an฀ entry฀ into฀ the฀ sociology฀ of฀ modernization฀in฀India.฀Saran’s฀work฀was฀an฀imperious,฀unforgiving,฀ and฀lonely฀critique฀of฀the฀sociological฀encounter฀with฀modernity.฀One฀ can฀follow฀him฀best฀through฀K.฀P.฀Gupta’s฀exegesis฀in฀his฀“Sociology฀of฀ Tradition฀and฀the฀Tradition฀of฀Indian฀Sociology”฀(1974).฀Saran฀began฀ by฀asking฀whether฀the฀indigenous฀system฀of฀tradition฀could฀produce,฀ support,฀or฀co-exist฀with฀completely฀alien฀systems฀of฀modernity.฀He฀was฀ specifically฀interested฀in฀understanding฀whether฀Western฀influence฀and฀ the฀attendant฀internalization฀of฀the฀West฀could฀lead฀to฀the฀modernization฀ of฀the฀Hindu฀tradition. In฀broad฀terms,฀for฀contemporary฀Indian฀sociology,฀the฀answer฀was฀ in฀ the฀ affirmative.฀ Indian฀ sociology฀ rarely฀ expressed฀ an฀ unqualified฀ allegiance฀to฀Hinduism฀or฀indulged฀in฀a฀tactless฀celebration฀of฀Westernization.฀As฀Gupta฀remarked฀(1974:฀34),฀“in฀the฀modernized฀consciousness฀ of฀the฀Indian฀sociologist,฀tradition฀is฀fully฀compatible฀with฀modernity.฀ It฀is฀strictly฀within฀this฀context฀that฀the฀synthesis฀and฀the฀hybrid฀have฀ become฀the฀two฀most฀popular฀components฀of฀modernization฀theory฀ in฀India.” Saran฀dubbed฀this฀tactic฀“a฀false฀consciousness,”฀because฀it฀instrumentalized฀tradition฀as฀a฀tool฀for฀modernity฀and฀because฀it฀trivialized฀tradition฀ by฀employing฀modernistic฀criteria฀to฀evaluate฀and฀understand฀tradition.฀ Gupta฀added฀that฀the฀tactic฀had฀fatal฀consequences฀at฀an฀empirical฀and฀ methodological฀level.฀He฀explained฀that฀a฀sociologist฀was฀restricted฀to฀ fragments,฀morsels,฀or฀residues฀of฀tradition฀such฀as฀religious฀fairs฀and฀ fasts.฀At฀a฀slightly฀deeper฀level,฀an฀Indian฀social฀scientist฀might฀express฀an฀

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irrepressible฀joy฀upon฀seeing฀a฀fatalist฀Hindu฀peasant฀accepting฀fertilizers฀ and฀pesticides.฀This฀act฀in฀itself฀seems฀to฀confirm฀all฀his฀predispositions฀ about฀modernization฀of฀Hindu฀tradition.฀“At฀a฀methodological฀level,฀ Hinduism฀is฀delinked฀from฀its฀institutional฀base฀and฀is฀studied฀only฀as฀ a฀congeries฀of฀disparate฀acts฀and฀beliefs฀which฀can฀be฀used฀and฀abused฀ in฀the฀process฀of฀modernization”฀(Gupta฀1974:฀34). For฀Saran,฀Hindu฀religion฀and฀society฀were฀inseparable,฀but฀Muslim฀ conquest฀and฀colonial฀rule฀had฀artificially฀bifurcated฀them.฀As฀a฀result,฀ one฀ saw฀ evidence฀ of฀ apologetic฀ patterns฀ of฀ “synthesis”฀ and฀ “adaptation.”฀Saran฀argued฀that฀the฀only฀anthropologist฀who฀resisted฀this฀was฀ Gandhi.฀But฀Gandhian฀anthropology฀was฀rejected฀in฀post-independence฀ modernization฀ and฀ socialism,฀ which฀ accommodated฀ it฀ only฀ as฀ a฀ humanistic฀counterforce฀to฀the฀transfer-of-technology฀regime.฀With฀a฀ weakened฀tradition฀and฀a฀superficial฀modernity,฀India฀easily฀adopted฀ colonial฀models฀of฀change,฀even฀when฀they฀were฀outdated. Saran’s฀scattered฀writings฀offered฀one฀of฀the฀original฀challenges฀to฀ social฀ science฀ research฀ in฀ India.฀ He฀ established฀ clear฀ links฀ between฀ imperialism฀and฀social฀science฀research฀and฀was฀among฀the฀first฀to฀warn฀ of฀India’s฀pseudo-autonomy฀in฀the฀sphere฀of฀economic฀development฀ and฀modernization.฀And฀he฀made฀one฀last฀crucial฀contribution.฀He฀saw฀ center฀ and฀ periphery฀ not฀ as฀ colonized฀ and฀ colonizing฀ spaces฀ but฀ as฀ hegemonies฀of฀time.฀He฀claimed฀that฀“modernity฀is฀a฀time-word,฀and฀ with฀the฀idea฀of฀progress,฀‘life฀has฀to฀be฀lived฀on฀an฀upward฀slope.’”฀ The฀hegemony฀of฀time฀was฀what฀marked฀the฀sociology฀of฀development.฀ He฀complained: Modernity฀cannot฀be฀used฀as฀a฀quality-word฀without฀freezing฀a฀portion฀ of฀ history;฀ and฀ this฀ absolutization฀ of฀ a฀ fragment฀ is฀ so฀ patently฀ antihistorical฀ that฀ it฀ is฀ a฀ miracle฀ that฀ no฀ serious฀ attention฀ has฀ been฀ paid฀ to฀ this฀ problem.฀ If฀ there฀ have฀ to฀ be฀ any฀ absolute฀ values฀ validated฀ by฀ history,฀time฀must฀have฀an฀end;฀and฀time,฀for฀our฀modern฀sociologists,฀ does฀have฀an฀end.฀To฀see฀this,฀one฀must฀know฀that฀though฀the฀sociology฀ of฀modernization฀and฀social฀change฀pretends฀to฀be฀universal฀in฀validity฀ and฀ global฀ in฀ scope,฀ it฀ is฀ meant฀ exclusively฀ for฀ the฀ low฀ development฀ countries฀(LDCs),฀and฀does฀not฀apply฀at฀all฀to฀North฀America฀and฀Europe.฀฀ For฀them฀there฀may฀be฀problems฀of฀post-industrial,฀post-modern,฀or฀postChristian฀ society,฀ but฀ these฀ are฀ radically฀ different฀ from฀ the฀ problems฀ and฀ dilemmas฀ of฀ modernization฀ in฀ the฀ low฀ development฀ countries.฀ For฀ European฀ and฀ American฀ sociologists฀ think฀ in฀ terms฀ of฀ alternative฀ utopias,฀futurology,฀coping฀with฀future฀shock,฀constructing฀and฀coping฀ with฀a฀cybernetic฀society,฀beating฀the฀ecological฀crisis฀(zero฀growth฀rate),฀

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the฀ death-of-God฀ theology,฀ counterculture,฀ consciousness฀ III฀ and฀ the฀ greening฀of฀America.฀None฀of฀this฀has฀any฀real฀kinship฀or฀even฀affinity฀ with฀ the฀ modernization฀ of฀ the฀ under-developed฀ countries฀ of฀ Asia฀ and฀ Africa฀except฀in฀honorific฀senses.฀(Saran฀1975:฀104)

But฀sadly,฀although฀Saran’s฀was฀a฀brilliant฀challenge฀to฀modernity,฀ he฀failed฀to฀build฀a฀sociology฀of฀tradition.฀As฀he฀became฀a฀lone฀voice,฀ what฀ dominated฀ sociology฀ was฀ the฀ rhetoric฀ of฀ “the฀ modernity฀ of฀ tradition.”฀ Modernity,฀ sociology,฀ and฀ nation฀ building฀ went฀ happily฀ hand฀in฀hand฀in฀the฀discourse฀of฀Indian฀sociology฀in฀the฀1960s฀and฀ 1970s.฀This฀happy฀but฀modest฀consciousness฀is฀what฀I฀want฀to฀discuss฀ in฀the฀next฀section.

V The฀debates฀I฀have฀described฀so฀far฀painted฀sociology฀as฀an฀intellectual฀ exercise฀meditating฀on฀civilizations฀and฀metaphysical฀issues฀of฀time,฀ modernity,฀ and฀ epistemology.฀ The฀ 1960s฀ saw฀ an฀ overall฀ change฀ in฀ style.฀Sociology฀became฀more฀pragmatic,฀more฀professional,฀and฀more฀ everyday.฀It฀exploded฀from฀being฀a฀marginal฀exercise฀performed฀by฀a฀ few฀university฀dons฀into฀an฀experiment฀of฀nationwide฀proportions.฀This฀ explosion฀is฀best฀understood฀by฀following฀the฀narratives฀of฀outstanding฀ sociologists฀of฀the฀period฀such฀M.฀N.฀Srinivas฀and฀André฀Béteille.฀Both฀ were฀superb฀storytellers. In฀his฀various฀reminiscences,฀M.฀N.฀Srinivas฀recounted฀that฀in฀the฀ colonial฀period฀sociology฀was฀barely฀tolerated฀as฀a฀subject฀in฀India.฀And฀ even฀that฀bias,฀he฀explained,฀was฀a฀colonial฀inheritance: To฀ British฀ academics,฀ sociology฀ was฀ a฀ foreign฀ subject;฀ its฀ origins฀ were฀ in฀Europe฀and฀it฀was฀also฀associated฀with฀socialism.฀The฀Indian฀elites,฀ educated฀in฀British฀universities,฀accepted฀these฀prejudices฀as฀a฀matter฀of฀ course.฀It฀was฀significant฀that฀in฀Britain,฀sociology฀was฀established฀as฀an฀ academic฀discipline฀outside฀Oxbridge,฀in฀LSE,฀founded฀by฀the฀Fabians,฀ Sidney฀ and฀ Beatrice฀ Webb.฀ The฀ first฀ professor฀ of฀ sociology฀ in฀ LSE฀ was฀ Edward฀Westermarck,฀a฀Finn.฀(Srinivas฀1994:฀10)

He฀added฀that฀the฀change฀in฀Indian฀scholars’฀attitude฀toward฀sociology฀ came฀ with฀ a฀ switch฀ in฀ their฀ models฀ of฀ excellence.฀ From฀ the฀ 1960s฀ onward,฀the฀United฀States฀became฀the฀country฀of฀academic฀excellence฀ and฀ a฀ strong฀ source฀ of฀ intellectual฀ influence.฀ Srinivas฀ noted฀ that฀ “it฀ was฀ the฀ Ford฀ Foundation฀ under฀ Douglas฀ Ensminger฀ which฀ sold฀ the฀

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whole฀ idea฀ of฀ community฀ development฀ to฀ Prime฀ Minister฀ Nehru.฀ A฀ few฀rural฀sociologists฀from฀the฀US฀visited฀India฀to฀advise฀the฀Planning฀ Commission฀on฀how฀to฀promote฀development฀in฀Indian฀villages”฀(1994:฀ 11). The฀post-independence฀years฀saw฀the฀establishment฀of฀programs฀on฀ South฀Asia฀at฀Chicago,฀Cornell,฀Pennsylvania,฀Columbia,฀Wisconsin,฀ Duke,฀ and฀ California.฀ Srinivas฀ described฀ the฀ moment฀ as฀ an฀ epochal฀ one฀ “which฀ marked฀ the฀ discovery฀ of฀ India฀ by฀ American฀ scholars,฀ if฀ we฀ except฀ a฀ few฀ odd฀ but฀ important฀ figures฀ like฀ Norman฀ Brown฀ and฀ David฀Mandelbaum”฀(1994:฀11).฀These฀years฀also฀witnessed฀a฀substantial฀ funding฀ of฀ Indian฀ studies฀ by฀ the฀ Ford฀ and฀ Rockefeller฀ Foundations.฀ In฀addition,฀a฀substantial฀quantum฀of฀research฀was฀done฀in฀the฀social฀ sciences฀thanks฀to฀US฀development฀aid฀given฀under฀Public฀Law฀480. Of฀course฀Srinivas฀was฀quick฀to฀add฀that฀sociology฀did฀not฀develop฀ as฀a฀result฀of฀external฀initiatives฀alone.฀Indian฀society,฀he฀emphasized,฀ had฀ established฀ reservations฀ for฀ scheduled฀ castes฀ and฀ tribes,฀ an฀ affirmative฀action฀plan฀that฀affected฀over฀400฀million฀people.฀The฀very฀ fact฀ of฀ this฀ process฀ of฀ social฀ change฀ and฀ the฀ need฀ to฀ make฀ sense฀ of฀ it฀contributed฀to฀the฀popularity฀of฀sociology.฀Srinivas฀established฀the฀ dominant฀department฀of฀the฀time฀at฀the฀Delhi฀School฀of฀Economics฀ at฀the฀University฀of฀Delhi.฀The฀question฀one฀must฀ask฀is,฀What฀kind฀of฀ sociology฀grew฀in฀this฀and฀other฀departments? André฀Béteille฀(1993:฀291–304),฀one฀of฀the฀first฀lecturers฀in฀sociology฀ at฀ the฀ University฀ of฀ Delhi,฀ explained฀ that฀ the฀ goal฀ was฀ to฀ create฀ a฀ comparative฀sociology—and฀sociology฀had฀to฀be฀comparative,฀or฀it฀was฀ nothing.฀A฀sociology฀that฀abandoned฀a฀comparative฀approach฀tended฀ to฀ be฀ either฀ abstract฀ and฀ philosophical฀ or฀ narrow฀ and฀ eccentric.฀ He฀ said฀ it฀ was฀ well฀ known฀ that฀ the฀ latter฀ bias฀ was฀ found฀ in฀ American฀ textbooks,฀and฀Indian฀students฀suffered฀for฀it.฀For฀Béteille,฀committed฀ always฀to฀steering฀between฀extremes,฀“a฀comparative฀sociology฀is฀the฀ best฀safeguard฀against฀excessive฀narrowness.” A฀comparative฀sociology,฀he฀believed,฀was฀also฀an฀intellectual฀and฀ pragmatic฀challenge฀to฀colonialism,฀which฀had฀created฀an฀artificial฀ barrier฀ between฀ “primitive”฀ and฀ advanced฀ societies฀ and฀ a฀ parallel฀ split฀between฀social฀anthropology฀and฀sociology.฀He฀contended฀that฀ students฀of฀society฀and฀culture฀had฀a฀special฀role฀to฀play฀in฀examining฀ how฀ far฀ this฀ separation฀ was฀ justified.฀ An฀ Indian฀ seeking฀ to฀ understand฀his฀own฀society,฀he฀wrote,฀encountered฀a฀variety฀of฀social฀ formations,฀from฀the฀simplest฀to฀the฀most฀complex.฀Given฀this,฀the฀ division฀of฀labor฀between฀sociology฀and฀social฀anthropology฀was฀both฀ colonial฀and฀constricting.฀And฀this฀division฀was฀most฀marked฀in฀US฀

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universities,฀which฀inevitably฀consigned฀a฀social฀anthropologist฀to฀ an฀anthropology฀department. To฀Béteille’s฀vision฀of฀a฀comparative฀social฀anthropology,฀Srinivas฀added฀ an฀obsession฀with฀fieldwork.฀For฀Srinivas,฀sociology฀was฀an฀empirical฀ discipline,฀ and฀ he฀ saw฀ fieldwork฀ as฀ integral฀ to฀ it.฀ He฀ combined฀ this฀ view฀with฀a฀structural-functional฀approach,฀the฀possibilities฀of฀which฀ became฀ known฀ through฀ an฀ analysis฀ of฀ simple฀ village฀ studies.฀ What฀ structural-functionalism฀did฀as฀a฀method฀was฀to฀render฀unfashionable฀ the฀ explanation฀ of฀ Indian฀ institutions฀ such฀ as฀ caste฀ and฀ family฀ by฀ reference฀to฀the฀scriptures. The฀house฀of฀sociology฀that฀Srinivas฀built฀was฀a฀happy฀consciousness฀ rendered฀clearer฀by฀a฀tacit฀boundary฀maintenance฀between฀sociology฀ and฀economics.฀In฀the฀early฀years,฀social฀anthropologists฀stayed฀away฀ from฀policy฀and฀planning.฀The฀arrogant฀confidence฀of฀the฀economists฀ at฀ the฀ Delhi฀ School฀ of฀ Economics,฀ especially฀ Sen฀ and฀ Chakrabarty,฀ reinforced฀their฀tacit฀acts฀of฀boundary฀maintenance.฀Finally,฀as฀Srinivas฀ observed,฀the฀apparent฀relevance฀of฀sociology฀rose฀because฀of฀the฀popular฀ misconception฀that฀it฀was฀a฀kind฀of฀social฀work. Sujata฀Patel฀(1998),฀in฀her฀study฀of฀Srinivas,฀observed฀that฀his฀autobiography,฀ Indian฀ Society฀ through฀ Personal฀ Writings฀ (1996),฀ reflected฀ a฀ typically฀Brahman,฀middle-class฀approach฀to฀sociology.฀She฀noted฀the฀ absence฀of฀politics฀in฀the฀work,฀remarking฀that฀“obviously฀the฀power฀ of฀the฀colonial฀state฀or฀the฀protest฀against฀the฀nation-state฀that฀had฀ emerged฀ in฀ and฀ through฀ the฀ national฀ movement฀ had฀ no฀ influence฀ on฀the฀family’s฀fortunes”฀(Patel฀1998:฀41–69).฀As฀we฀meet฀Srinivas฀the฀ fieldworker,฀we฀see฀someone฀who฀embodies฀the฀hopes฀and฀desires฀of฀ the฀elites฀of฀a฀newly฀independent฀country.฀Changes฀are฀taking฀place฀in฀ village฀India฀and฀are฀being฀praised฀for฀their฀benefits.฀As฀a฀fieldworker,฀ Srinivas฀recorded฀“new฀techniques฀entering฀the฀village,฀oil฀mills฀being฀ set฀up,฀bus฀routes฀being฀started.฀He฀[was]฀proud฀of฀the฀fact฀that฀one฀of฀ his฀respondents฀was฀later฀able฀to฀buy฀a฀car฀and฀even฀gave฀him฀a฀lift฀as฀ he฀was฀walking฀down฀the฀street.”฀In฀a฀strangely฀predictable฀way,฀social฀ anthropology฀became฀a฀collection฀of฀cautiously฀celebratory฀narratives฀ describing฀economic฀development฀and฀emphasizing฀the฀resilience฀of฀ caste.฀The฀village฀Srinivas฀described฀in฀his฀1976฀book,฀The฀Remembered฀ Village฀was,฀like฀the฀Malgudi฀of฀the฀novelist฀R.฀K.฀Narayan,฀a฀transparently฀ happy฀village.฀The฀gods฀were฀in฀heaven,฀Nehru฀was฀in฀command,฀and฀ all฀was฀almost฀right฀with฀the฀world฀of฀village฀India. It฀was฀this฀self-satisfaction฀with฀a฀professionalized฀social฀anthropology฀ that฀came฀tumbling฀down฀when฀Indira฀Gandhi฀imposed฀the฀Emergency,฀ a฀period฀of฀constitutional฀dictatorship,฀in฀1975.

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VI The฀ sociology฀ of฀ the฀ Emergency฀ and฀ its฀ aftermath฀ is฀ not฀ something฀ one฀ finds฀ in฀ official฀ Indian฀ sociology฀ books.฀ It฀ does฀ not฀ appear฀ in฀ Contributions฀or฀the฀Sociological฀Bulletin,฀except฀for฀a฀brief฀mention฀by฀ Srinivas฀claiming฀it฀was฀an฀aberration.฀The฀Emergency฀rendered฀effete฀ the฀major฀institutions฀of฀Indian฀society,฀from฀trade฀unions฀and฀courts฀ to฀the฀Indian฀university.฀Strangely,฀no฀major฀sociological฀reflection฀on฀ it฀exists.฀Indeed,฀the฀finest฀study฀of฀the฀Emergency฀is฀still฀that฀of฀the฀ Shah฀commission,฀a฀commission฀that฀was฀to฀investigate฀the฀“excesses”฀ of฀the฀Emergency.฀Whatever฀competent฀sociology฀was฀done฀at฀the฀time฀ was฀ the฀ work฀ of฀ journalists฀ such฀ as฀ Arun฀ Shouries,฀ Kuldeep฀ Nayar,฀ and฀Ashok฀Mitra.฀Yet฀even฀they฀seemed฀haunted฀by฀the฀ghosts฀of฀the฀ Frankfurt฀school;฀they฀constructed฀the฀Emergency฀through฀a฀theoretical฀ miming฀of฀Adorno฀and฀Horkheimer.฀Indira฀Gandhi,฀however,฀was฀no฀ Hitler,฀and฀India’s฀Central฀Bureau฀of฀Investigation฀no฀Gestapo. Sociology฀ could฀ offer฀ little฀ toward฀ understanding฀ the฀ Emergency,฀ but฀the฀reciprocal฀effect฀was฀devastating.฀The฀Emergency฀shattered฀the฀ happy฀world฀of฀functional฀sociology฀and฀sociologists’฀odes฀to฀Parsons,฀ Merton,฀ and฀ Levy฀ in฀ a฀ way฀ no฀ Marxist฀ critique฀ could฀ have฀ done.฀ It฀ met฀ the฀ innocence฀ and฀ naïveté฀ of฀ an฀ Indian฀ social฀ science฀ bereft฀ of฀ any฀theory฀of฀dictatorship,฀institution฀building,฀or฀evil.฀It฀proved฀that฀ sociologists,฀like฀most฀other฀Indian฀citizens,฀loved฀Indian฀democracy฀ but฀had฀little฀knowledge฀of฀it฀beyond฀a฀few฀election฀studies.฀A฀society฀ too฀ preoccupied฀ with฀ development,฀ modernity,฀ and฀ caste฀ suddenly฀ appeared฀illiterate฀about฀violence฀and฀democracy. The฀shock฀of฀the฀Emergency฀forced฀social฀scientists฀to฀reexamine฀their฀ Nehruvian฀commitment฀to฀modernity,฀nation฀building,฀and฀science.฀ What฀ emerged฀ was฀ a฀ sociology฀ that฀ challenged฀ the฀ social฀ contract฀ between฀science,฀the฀nation-state,฀security,฀and฀development. The฀sociology฀created฀by฀the฀Emergency฀and฀its฀aftermath฀emerged฀ not฀in฀Contributions฀but฀in฀grassroots฀journals฀such฀as฀Lokayan฀Bulletin.฀ The฀new฀sociological฀problematic฀was฀constructed฀out฀of฀the฀battles฀of฀ human฀rights฀activists฀and฀feminist฀groups.฀From฀the฀Emergency฀and฀its฀ commitment฀to฀the฀big฀science฀of฀the฀nation-state฀arose฀one฀of฀the฀finest฀ critiques฀of฀science฀in฀the฀world,฀exemplified฀in฀the฀writings฀of฀Vandana฀ Shiva,฀Ashis฀Nandy,฀Claude฀Alvares,฀and฀C.฀V.฀Seshadri.฀In฀an฀attempt฀ to฀reinvent฀democracy,฀these฀critics฀emphasized,฀first,฀that฀the฀standard฀ notions฀ of฀ citizenship฀ were฀ not฀ enough฀ to฀ protect฀ marginal฀ people฀ from฀the฀degradations฀of฀modern฀development.฀They฀highlighted฀the฀ paradox฀that฀India฀had฀more฀refugees฀from฀development฀than฀from฀all฀ the฀wars฀it฀had฀fought.฀Second,฀they฀recognized฀that฀a฀new฀sociology฀

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of฀human฀rights฀was฀needed฀that฀went฀beyond฀the฀universalism฀of฀the฀ UN฀charter.฀Third,฀they฀emphasized฀that฀nature฀and฀technology฀had฀to฀ be฀reworked฀in฀a฀sociology฀of฀India.฀And฀finally,฀the฀critics฀stressed฀the฀ new฀relations฀of฀science฀and฀democracy,฀which฀meant฀new฀demands฀on฀ both.฀Democracy฀needed฀to฀encompass฀more฀than฀just฀participation,฀ and฀science฀needed฀to฀exceed฀the฀mere฀diffusion฀of฀technology฀within฀ India. Strangely,฀this฀vision฀of฀sociology฀was฀captured฀best฀in฀the฀writings฀ of฀a฀political฀scientist,฀Rajni฀Kothari,฀and฀a฀psychoanalyst,฀Ashis฀Nandy฀ (Kothari฀1989a,฀1989b,฀1989c;฀Nandy฀1980,฀1988).฀At฀the฀Center฀for฀ the฀ Study฀ of฀ Developing฀ Societies฀ in฀ Delhi,฀ the฀ two฀ created฀ a฀ new฀ sociology฀in฀which฀they฀attempted฀to฀reinvent฀a฀vision฀of฀democracy,฀ publishing฀ primarily฀ in฀ journals฀ such฀ as฀ Seminar,฀ Alternatives,฀ and฀ Lokayan฀Bulletin.฀Marxists,฀structuralists,฀and฀functionalists฀had฀little฀to฀ say฀about฀the฀violence฀of฀the฀Green฀Revolution฀or฀the฀new฀colonialism฀ of฀development.฀Oddly,฀the฀debates฀over฀a฀sociology฀of฀India฀had฀little฀ to฀add.฀This฀arena฀for฀sociology฀became฀the฀tacit฀prerogative฀of฀little฀ magazines฀and฀grassroots฀movements. One฀ of฀ the฀ outstanding฀ critiques฀ of฀ the฀ Emergency฀ was฀ a฀ new฀ sociology฀ of฀ science฀ that฀ bypassed฀ the฀ world฀ of฀ Merton,฀ Shils,฀ and฀ even฀Bernal.฀What฀emerged฀was฀a฀critique฀of฀epistemology฀as฀a฀valueneutral฀enterprise.฀Science฀as฀a฀method฀had฀to฀be฀linked฀to฀ideas฀of฀life,฀ lifestyle,฀livelihood,฀life฀cycle,฀and฀life฀chances.฀This฀critique฀triggered฀an฀ exploration฀of฀alternatives฀that฀created฀a฀more฀cosmopolitan฀sociology฀ than฀the฀sociology฀of฀modernization,฀which฀was฀mirrored฀in฀the฀centerperiphery฀model.฀A฀search฀for฀new฀paradigms฀and฀exemplars฀was฀on฀as฀ Parsons฀and฀Merton฀gave฀way฀to฀Gandhi฀and฀Illich.฀It฀brought฀about฀ two฀ powerful฀ readings฀ of฀ history.฀ First,฀ there฀ was฀ the฀ search฀ for฀ an฀ alternative฀science฀based฀on฀the฀works฀of฀Alvares฀(1992),฀Dharampal฀ (1971),฀and฀even฀the฀old฀orientalist฀documents.฀This฀new฀reading฀of฀ Indology฀and฀of฀the฀colonial฀documents฀met฀its฀counterpart฀in฀a฀new฀ generation฀of฀historians฀called฀the฀“subalterns.”฀Unfortunately,฀no฀real฀ encounter฀or฀dialogue฀has฀taken฀place฀between฀the฀subalterns’฀reading฀ of฀colonialism฀and฀the฀alternative฀histories฀of฀the฀critique-of-science฀ movement.฀ The฀ subalterns,฀ in฀ a฀ later฀ move,฀ did฀ produce฀ a฀ series฀ of฀ studies฀ in฀ science,฀ but฀ the฀ work฀ of฀ Gyan฀ Prakash฀ (2000)฀ and฀ David฀ Arnold฀(2000)฀remains฀antiseptic฀next฀to฀the฀muscular฀subalternism฀ of฀Alvares฀and฀Sunil฀Suhasrabudhey.฀An฀encounter฀between฀the฀two฀ remains฀one฀of฀the฀major฀tasks฀of฀world฀anthropology. Sadly,฀ the฀ dissenting฀ imaginations฀ of฀ the฀ post-Emergency฀ period฀ were฀easily฀domesticated.฀The฀possibility฀of฀an฀alternative฀science฀and฀

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the฀critique฀by฀the฀feminists฀were฀absorbed,฀in฀a฀reductive฀sense,฀by฀ the฀UN฀discourse฀on฀sustainability฀and฀the฀World฀Bank’s฀and฀United฀ Nations’฀ discourses฀ on฀ development.฀ There฀ is฀ a฀ split-level฀ sociology฀ here฀that฀we฀must฀understand.฀In฀fact฀it฀was฀the฀economists,฀seeking฀ to฀absorb฀the฀critique฀and฀humanize฀economics,฀who฀performed฀the฀ exercise.฀One฀thinks฀in฀particular฀of฀Mahbub฀ul฀Haq฀and฀Amartaya฀Sen.฀ Their฀idea฀of฀entitlements฀as฀social฀capital฀blended฀with฀the฀notion฀of฀ sustainability฀and฀created฀the฀possibility฀of฀a฀better฀world฀for฀women฀ and฀children฀in฀terms฀of฀education,฀nutrition,฀and฀quality฀of฀life.฀But฀ such฀UN฀discourses฀ignored฀the฀wider฀plea฀of฀grassroots฀sociologists฀to฀ incorporate฀the฀ideas฀of฀alternatives,฀the฀commons,฀or฀even฀cognitive฀ justice฀ and฀ representation฀ into฀ the฀ new฀ charters฀ of฀ development.฀ Generally,฀ though,฀ Sen฀ and฀ M.฀ S.฀ Swaminathan฀ rested฀ comfortably฀ with฀Nandy฀and฀Kothari.฀The฀official฀and฀the฀dissenting,฀the฀state฀and฀ the฀ nongovernmental฀ organizations,฀ were฀ easy฀ fellows฀ in฀ consensus฀ around฀the฀idea฀of฀sustainable฀development.

VII The฀ celebration฀ of฀ civil฀ society฀ and฀ alternative฀ science฀ that฀ marked฀ the฀ 1980s฀ and฀ 1990s฀ slowly฀ came฀ unstuck฀ with฀ the฀ emergence฀ of฀ globalization.฀Globalization฀caught฀the฀sociology฀of฀India฀flat-footed.฀ The฀ writings฀ of฀ Nandy,฀ Kothari,฀ Das,฀ and฀ Madan฀ have฀ little฀ to฀ say฀ about฀it.฀Partly฀it฀might฀be฀too฀protean฀a฀text฀for฀the฀postcolonialists฀to฀ decode.฀The฀sociology฀of฀globalization฀in฀India฀has฀to฀rely฀on฀diasporic฀ intellectuals฀such฀as฀Arjun฀Appadurai,฀whose฀studies฀of฀globalization฀ have฀acquired฀a฀textbook฀imprimatur.฀Indeed,฀the฀position฀of฀Appadurai฀ and฀ scholars฀ such฀ as฀ Dipesh฀ Chakrabarty,฀ Homi฀ Bhabha,฀ and฀ Veena฀ Das฀demands฀that฀we฀understand฀the฀diaspora฀both฀theoretically฀and฀ in฀terms฀of฀case฀studies.฀These฀scholars’฀writings฀have฀helped฀create฀a฀ postcolonial฀ understanding฀ of฀ India,฀ but฀ it฀ is฀ still฀ an฀ understanding฀ at฀a฀remove฀from฀India.฀It฀is฀an฀exercise฀created฀in฀Chicago,฀Sydney,฀ or฀Sussex฀and฀then฀mimicked฀in฀Delhi฀and฀Bombay.฀In฀an฀ironic฀way,฀ postcolonialism฀threatens฀to฀be฀a฀diasporic฀exercise,฀at฀least฀in฀terms฀ of฀its฀creative฀centers. But฀ this฀ only฀ emphasizes฀ the฀ need฀ for฀ a฀ more฀ sophisticated฀ study฀ of฀the฀diaspora.฀Sociologically,฀the฀diasporic฀being,฀as฀citizen,฀must฀be฀ differentiated฀from฀the฀exile,฀the฀migrant,฀and฀the฀refugee,฀who฀dominated฀the฀problematic฀of฀twentieth-century฀sociology.฀One฀must฀also฀ study฀the฀long-distance฀nationalism฀of฀the฀diaspora,฀which฀not฀only฀ fueled฀the฀violence฀of฀Punjab฀and฀Sri฀Lanka฀but฀also฀became฀a฀form฀of฀

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consumption.฀A฀new฀generation฀of฀diasporics฀from฀India฀will฀soon฀be฀ studying฀India฀on฀American฀campuses฀in฀Berkeley฀and฀New฀York.฀How฀ will฀they฀construct฀India?฀Will฀the฀diaspora฀create฀a฀new฀orientalism฀ subtler฀than฀those฀described฀by฀Edward฀Said?฀One฀already฀notices฀the฀ technocratic฀fundamentalism฀that฀stems฀from฀Silicon฀Valley฀and฀fills฀the฀ coffers฀of฀the฀Visva฀Hindu฀Parishad฀(VHP)฀and฀Bhartiya฀Janta฀Party฀(BJP).฀ Or฀can฀the฀diaspora฀help฀create฀a฀civic฀internationalism฀transcending฀ the฀compulsions฀of฀the฀nation-state?฀Where฀do฀members฀of฀the฀diaspora฀ stand฀on฀a฀sociology-anthropology฀for฀India? The฀sociological฀imagination฀as฀it฀exists฀in฀the฀global฀age฀thrives฀not฀ in฀Contributions฀or฀even฀in฀Economic฀and฀Political฀Weekly.฀It฀exists฀at฀four฀ levels฀and฀as฀four฀sets฀of฀possibilities.฀First,฀and฀for฀the฀first฀time,฀there฀ is฀a฀regional฀South฀Asian฀imagination.฀One฀can฀move฀at฀least฀from฀the฀ sociology฀of฀India฀to฀the฀sociology฀of฀South฀Asia,฀a฀change฀impelled฀by฀ three฀forces.฀The฀first฀is฀an฀intellectual฀appreciation฀of฀the฀fact฀that฀Sri฀ Lankan฀anthropologists฀have฀produced฀better฀and฀more฀sophisticated฀ studies฀of฀violence฀and฀ethnicity฀than฀the฀almost฀mechanical฀narratives฀ that฀Indians฀have฀produced฀about฀the฀Partition.฀Second,฀and฀similarly,฀ the฀Nepalese฀sociology฀of฀water฀is฀a฀powerful฀challenge฀to฀its฀Indian฀ neighbors.฀ The฀ third฀ force฀ is฀ that฀ Indian฀ sociology,฀ after฀ years฀ of฀ obsession฀with฀the฀United฀Kingdom฀and฀the฀United฀States,฀suddenly฀ senses฀dynamism฀and฀a฀diversity฀of฀ideas฀in฀South฀Asia.฀Its฀dissenting฀ imaginations฀seem฀happily฀fraternal.฀There฀is฀a฀sense฀that฀ideas฀appear฀ more฀playful฀closer฀to฀home.฀All฀this฀has฀led฀to฀repeated฀pleas฀for฀a฀ South฀Asian฀university. The฀second,฀and฀surrogate,฀imagination฀is฀a฀cinematic฀one.฀The฀anthropological฀imagination฀for฀once฀is฀no฀longer฀restricted฀to฀print.฀Cinema,฀ which฀was฀always฀in฀advance฀of฀social฀science,฀has฀become฀a฀powerful฀ index฀of฀the฀global฀mind.฀The฀works฀of฀Prakash฀Jha,฀Meera฀Nair,฀Mahesh฀ Bhatt,฀Aparna฀Sen,฀and฀Gurpreet฀Chaddha฀create฀a฀new฀anthropological฀ consciousness฀that฀sociology฀in฀print฀finds฀hard฀to฀match,฀except฀as฀a฀ secondary฀act฀of฀deconstruction. The฀third฀imagination฀is฀a฀literary฀one.฀Indian฀writings฀in฀English฀ have฀become฀powerful฀anthropological฀imaginings,฀adding฀to฀the฀earlier฀ analyses฀of฀R.฀K.฀Narayan,฀V.฀S.฀Naipaul,฀and฀Nirad฀C.฀Chaoudhary.฀The฀ works฀of฀Salman฀Rushdie,฀Amitav฀Ghosh,฀Vikram฀Seth,฀and฀Rohinton฀ Mistry฀provide฀a฀better฀understanding฀of฀the฀sociology฀of฀the฀middle฀ class,฀the฀Emergency,฀and฀the฀new฀biculturalism฀that฀celebrates฀globalism฀ than฀does฀the฀formal฀textbook฀sociology฀of฀globalism. Finally,฀there฀is฀the฀new฀Dalit฀sociology,฀tired฀of฀the฀indifference฀of฀ Srinivas฀and฀Dumont฀toward฀issues฀of฀violence฀and฀atrocity.฀It฀challenges฀

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the฀ethnocentric฀definition฀of฀caste฀enshrined฀in฀Dumontian฀sociology฀ by฀claiming฀tactically฀that฀caste฀is฀a฀form฀of฀race฀and฀that฀official฀India฀ can฀be฀seen฀as฀engaging฀in฀apartheid.฀Debates฀in฀Durban,฀South฀Africa,฀ where฀caste฀was฀presented฀as฀a฀form฀of฀racism,฀showed฀the฀power฀and฀ imagination฀of฀the฀movement.฀But฀Dalit฀sociology฀still฀needs฀a฀more฀ powerful฀critique฀of฀the฀modern฀and฀the฀postmodern. Surrounded฀by฀these฀four฀imaginations฀is฀the฀new฀academic฀sociology฀ that฀is฀struggling฀to฀understand฀terrorism,฀multinational฀corporations,฀ ecology,฀the฀network฀society,฀the฀plight฀of฀marginals,฀and฀the฀sociology฀ of฀disasters.฀One฀suddenly฀realizes฀that฀a฀whole฀generation฀has฀either฀ retired฀or฀turned฀diasporic.฀The฀new฀sociologists฀have฀yet฀to฀emerge฀as฀ clear฀exemplars฀or฀with฀new฀paradigms.฀Sociology฀suddenly฀appears฀ silent฀ or฀ strangely฀ imitative.฀ Oddly,฀ at฀ a฀ time฀ when฀ the฀ sociological฀ imagination฀ floats฀ freely฀ across฀ sectors,฀ academic฀ sociology฀ in฀ India฀ appears฀ mute฀ or฀ helpless.฀ The฀ twenty-first฀ century฀ arrived฀ early฀ in฀ India,฀ but฀ its฀ concepts฀ seem฀ sleepily฀ outdated.฀ One฀ senses฀ the฀ need฀ for฀a฀new฀D.฀P.฀Mukherjee฀or฀an฀A.฀K.฀Saran;฀indeed,฀one฀longs฀for฀a฀ new฀conversation฀on฀a฀sociology฀for฀India.฀Until฀then,฀globalization฀is฀ going฀to฀be฀a฀discourse฀conducted฀by฀diasporics฀and฀the฀World฀Bank฀ about฀a฀strangely฀silent฀India.฀There฀is฀an฀emptiness฀here฀that฀we฀need฀ to฀understand฀and฀confront.

Part 4 From Anthropology Today to World Anthropologies

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t h i r t e e n

The Pictographics of Tristesse An Anthropology of Nation Building in the Tropics and Its Aftermath

Otávio Velho

I

n฀1982,฀the฀Swedish฀journal฀Ethnos฀dedicated฀a฀special฀number฀to฀ the฀subject฀of฀peripheral฀anthropologies฀and฀the฀building฀of฀national฀ anthropologies.฀ In฀ an฀ evaluative฀ epilogue,฀ titled฀ “A฀ View฀ from฀ the฀ Center,”฀George฀Stocking฀Jr.,฀the฀renowned฀historian฀of฀anthropology,฀ commented:฀“Indeed,฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀what฀is฀presented฀here,฀anthropology฀ at฀ the฀ periphery฀ seems฀ neither฀ so฀ nationally฀ varied฀ nor฀ so฀ sharply฀ divergent฀ from฀ that฀ of฀ the฀ center฀ as฀ the฀ conception฀ of฀ ‘the฀ shaping฀ of฀national฀anthropologies’฀might฀have฀implied”฀(1982:฀180).฀Farther฀ along,฀Stocking฀mentioned฀the฀failure฀of฀peripheral฀anthropologies฀to฀ sharply฀“differentiate฀themselves฀or฀to฀present฀radical฀alternatives฀to฀ ‘international฀anthropologies’”฀(1982:฀185).฀He฀concluded฀the฀article฀ by฀saying: While฀such฀problems฀may฀be฀viewed฀as฀temporary฀aspects฀of฀the฀shedding฀ of฀ dependency,฀ these฀ resonances฀ of฀ the฀ sense฀ of฀ malaise฀ at฀ the฀ center฀ suggest฀ that฀ the฀ identification฀ with฀ “nation-building”฀ has฀ not฀ enabled฀ peripheral฀ anthropologies฀ entirely฀ to฀ escape฀ involvement฀ in฀ the฀ post-colonial฀ “crisis฀ of฀ anthropology.”฀ What฀ the฀ outcome฀ of฀ that฀ involvement฀ may฀ be฀ is฀ beyond฀ the฀ scope฀ of฀ these฀ comments฀.฀.฀.฀ What฀ does฀ seem฀ likely฀ is฀ that฀ institutional฀ inertia฀ will฀ carry฀ on฀ a฀ certain฀ “business฀as฀usual”฀until฀the฀year฀2000—at฀which฀point฀those฀of฀us฀who฀ are฀still฀around฀may฀judge฀for฀ourselves.฀(Stocking฀1982:฀186)

Congratulating฀ourselves฀for฀still฀being฀around,฀now฀that฀the฀time฀ has฀come฀it฀seems฀appropriate฀to฀make฀the฀effort฀to฀judge฀the฀situation,฀ 261

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as฀Stocking฀suggested.฀His฀article฀is฀a฀good฀place฀to฀start.฀Although฀it฀ offers฀many฀points฀for฀discussion,฀I฀want฀to฀concentrate฀on฀Stocking’s฀ (frustrated)฀expectations,฀returning฀to฀his฀text฀after฀a฀brief฀digression. In฀an฀article฀about฀the฀Brazilian฀philosopher฀of฀law฀Roberto฀Mangabeira฀ Unger฀and฀his฀proposals฀for฀social฀and฀political฀reform,฀published฀in฀ 1991—less฀ than฀ ten฀ years฀ after฀ Stocking’s฀ article฀ appeared—Richard฀ Rorty฀compared฀Unger฀to฀none฀other฀than฀Walt฀Whitman.฀According฀ to฀Rorty,฀the฀encouragement฀Whitman฀sent฀from฀the฀New฀World฀to฀ Europe฀in฀the฀1880s฀was฀comparable฀to฀what฀Unger฀was฀sending฀from฀ Brazil,฀a฀Third฀World฀country฀(despite฀the฀fact฀that฀he฀taught฀at฀Harvard),฀ to฀the฀rich฀democracies฀of฀the฀Northern฀Hemisphere฀at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀ twentieth฀century.฀Rorty฀expressed฀the฀wish:฀“We฀hope฀to฀Heaven฀these฀ imaginary฀ institutions฀ [proposed฀ by฀ Unger]฀ do฀ sell฀ in฀ Brazil;฀ if฀ they฀ should฀actually฀work฀there,฀maybe฀then฀we฀could฀sell฀them฀here.฀The฀ Southern฀Hemisphere฀might฀conceivably,฀a฀generation฀hence,฀come฀to฀ the฀rescue฀of฀the฀Northern”฀(1991:฀181). Unger฀used฀the฀expression฀“Alexandrian฀figure”฀to฀refer฀to฀the฀kind฀ of฀American฀intellectual฀Rorty฀himself฀identified฀with,฀that฀is,฀someone฀ “still฀trying฀to฀be฀a฀liberal,฀but฀unable฀to฀repress฀his฀excitement฀over฀ the฀rumors฀about฀the฀barbarians”฀(Rorty฀1991:฀184).฀For฀Rorty,฀such฀ intellectuals฀must฀recognize฀that฀their฀familiar฀language฀games฀have฀ turned฀into฀“frozen฀politics,”฀serving฀to฀legitimate฀the฀forms฀of฀social฀ life฀from฀which฀they฀“desperately฀hope฀to฀break฀free”฀(1991:฀189). Toward฀the฀end฀of฀his฀essay,฀Rorty฀insisted฀that฀“if฀there’s฀hope,฀it฀lies฀ in฀the฀imagination฀of฀the฀Third฀World”฀(1991:฀192).฀My฀argument฀is฀ that฀although฀Rorty฀expressed฀hope฀regarding฀what฀might฀be฀expected฀ from฀the฀“romanticism”฀of฀Third฀World฀intellectuality,฀and฀Stocking฀ expressed฀disappointment,฀even฀if฀momentary,฀both฀men’s฀attitudes฀ were฀ “Alexandrian.”฀ Indeed,฀ to฀ Stocking’s฀ disappointment฀ could฀ be฀ added฀ Rorty’s฀ if฀ he฀ had฀ recognized฀ that,฀ contrary฀ to฀ his฀ own฀ belief,฀ Unger฀found฀his฀main฀audience฀not฀in฀Brazil฀but฀in฀the฀academic฀circles฀ of฀the฀United฀States.฀We฀might฀say฀that฀besides฀being฀Alexandrian,฀both฀ Stocking’s฀and฀Rorty’s฀attitudes฀were฀exoticizing฀and฀orientalizing฀ones,฀ although฀always฀in฀a฀benevolent฀or฀even฀messianic฀way. Today,฀we฀are฀apparently฀witnessing฀moments฀in฀center-periphery฀ relations฀when฀the฀domination฀that฀calls฀for฀mimetic฀reproduction฀is฀ being฀replaced฀by฀the฀agonistic฀demand฀for฀an฀“other”฀who฀can฀provide฀ difference.฀At฀least฀this฀seems฀to฀be฀occurring฀in฀certain฀fields,฀among฀ which฀is฀anthropology.฀Yet฀the฀communication฀of฀this฀change฀seems฀ incomplete;฀it฀finds฀more฀resonance฀among฀intellectuals฀who฀are฀closer฀ to฀the฀center฀and฀who฀take฀on฀the฀paradoxical฀role฀of฀self-proclaimed฀฀

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rebels,฀as฀has฀already฀been฀pointed฀out฀in฀postcolonialist฀debates.฀In฀Brazil,฀ however,฀this฀communication฀seems฀not฀to฀have฀been฀incorporated฀by฀ the฀immense฀majority฀of฀intellectuals฀generally฀or฀by฀anthropologists฀ in฀particular.฀What฀their฀expectations฀are฀in฀this฀case฀is฀another฀issue.

I But฀maybe฀this฀situation฀is฀not฀restricted฀to฀Brazil฀at฀all.฀At฀least฀this฀is฀ what฀I฀understand฀from฀an฀article฀by฀Mona฀Abaza฀and฀Georg฀Stauth฀(1990)฀ about฀the฀relationship฀between฀Islam฀and฀the฀West,฀the฀implications฀ of฀which฀for฀debates฀over฀the฀Middle฀East฀and฀Southeast฀Asia฀can฀be฀ put฀aside฀for฀now.฀Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀contest฀current฀approaches฀that฀ see฀Islamic฀fundamentalism฀as฀today’s฀functional฀equivalent฀to฀what฀ Calvinism,฀according฀to฀Weber,฀was฀to฀the฀West.฀Such฀approaches฀have฀ the฀revisionist฀purpose฀of฀admitting฀the฀possibility฀of฀a฀non-Western฀ capitalist฀development.฀In฀contrast,฀the฀authors฀provocatively฀invert฀ the฀positions,฀opposing฀the฀religious฀fundamentalisms฀of฀Western฀modernity฀and฀the฀secular฀fundamentals฀of฀modern฀tendencies฀in฀Islam.฀ They฀identify,฀in฀the฀perspective฀they฀criticize,฀a฀tendency฀toward฀“going฀ native”฀among฀both฀Western฀and฀local฀academics,฀in฀the฀name฀of฀a฀ reductionist฀ Foucauldian฀ discourse฀ that฀ demanded฀ (at฀ the฀ time)฀ an฀ “indigenization”฀of฀the฀social฀sciences฀in฀the฀Middle฀East฀and฀Southeast฀ Asia. The฀ important฀ point฀ for฀ our฀ discussion฀ is฀ that฀ according฀ to฀ these฀ authors,฀criticism฀of฀traditional฀orientalism฀contributed,฀paradoxically,฀ to฀creating฀a฀new฀form฀of฀orientalism,฀triggering฀an฀attack฀against฀secular฀ Third฀ World฀ intellectuals.฀ Abaza฀ and฀ Stauth฀ therefore฀ inverted฀ the฀ Weberian฀ interpretations฀ (both฀ orthodox฀ and฀ revisionist),฀ according฀ to฀which฀the฀West฀appears฀secular฀while฀the฀East฀remains฀religiously฀ inspired.฀Fundamentalism,฀for฀them,฀is฀actually฀a฀product฀of฀mass฀culture,฀ an฀ oriental฀ version฀ of฀ Western฀ imagery฀ of฀ projected฀ “religious฀ spirituality”฀and฀an฀aestheticizing฀of฀the฀“Orient.”฀Those฀who฀demand฀ “indigenization”฀ignore฀the฀fact฀that฀the฀“local฀knowledge”฀with฀which฀ they฀intend฀to฀construct฀an฀alternative฀has฀long฀been฀a฀part฀of฀global฀ structures,฀ participating฀ in฀ a฀ “global฀ game฀ which฀ itself฀ calls฀ for฀ the฀ ‘essentialization’฀of฀local฀truth”฀(Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀1990:฀213). The฀authors฀question฀whether฀modernity฀in฀the฀West฀did฀in฀fact฀lead฀to฀ a฀complete฀process฀of฀secularization.฀They฀also฀question฀to฀what฀extent฀ Islamic฀fundamentalism฀might฀be,฀rather฀than฀a฀reaction฀to฀an฀excess฀of฀ modernization฀and฀secularism,฀a฀reaction฀to฀“an฀incomplete฀and฀false฀ transposition฀of฀religious฀language฀into฀the฀language฀of฀‘modernity’”฀

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(1990:฀216)—the฀language฀of฀a฀negated฀Christian฀fundament—that฀took฀ place฀in฀the฀West.฀One฀might฀say฀that฀Islamic฀fundamentalism,฀with฀an฀ intellectual฀finesse฀rarely฀appreciated,฀harbors฀a฀point฀of฀view฀that฀in฀ the฀West—in฀contrast฀with฀the฀discourses฀of฀modernity฀and฀of฀Weber฀ himself,฀together฀with฀those฀of฀a฀great฀majority฀of฀social฀scientists— would฀ probably฀ have฀ been฀ endorsed฀ by฀ none฀ other฀ than฀ Friedrich฀ Nietzsche฀ in฀ his฀ critique฀ of฀ the฀ secular฀ masks฀ that฀ perpetuated฀ the฀ (Christian)฀negation฀of฀life,฀secular฀man฀being฀the฀“last฀Christian.” On฀the฀other฀hand,฀“native”฀anthropology฀did฀not฀produce฀alternatives฀ to฀Western฀methodology,฀as฀Stocking฀concluded฀more฀generally฀when฀he฀ mentioned฀the฀“resonances฀of฀the฀sense฀of฀malaise฀at฀the฀center”฀(1982:฀ 186).฀Such฀native฀anthropology฀would฀have฀found฀itself฀too฀ingrained฀in฀ the฀epistemological,฀methodological,฀and฀politico-ideological฀criticisms฀ of฀Western฀science:฀“the฀‘indigenisation฀perspective’฀falls฀into฀the฀very฀ trap฀of฀cultural฀globalisation฀against฀which฀it฀wants฀to฀stand฀up:฀the฀ claim฀for฀cultural฀and฀scientific฀authenticity฀in฀local฀traditions฀is฀in฀itself฀ a฀production฀of฀modernity”฀(Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀1990:฀219).

II If฀ one฀ takes฀ the฀ expression฀ “orientalism”฀ in฀ a฀ nonterritorial฀ sense— as฀ is฀ becoming฀ current—one฀ can฀ say฀ that฀ Brazil,฀ too,฀ has฀ been฀ the฀ object฀of฀an฀orientalism.฀Indeed,฀Brazil฀experienced฀a฀peculiar฀seconddegree฀orientalism,฀because฀the฀Portuguese฀colonizer฀himself฀was฀often฀ taken฀as฀a฀kind฀of฀oriental฀vis-à-vis฀the฀actual฀West.฀The฀best-known฀ Brazilian฀social฀scientist,฀Gilberto฀Freyre฀(1900–1987)฀may฀be฀pointed฀ out,฀especially฀for฀foreign฀audiences,฀as฀an฀iconic฀figure฀in฀this฀matter.฀ Freyre฀(1946)฀insisted฀on฀the฀Portuguese฀capacity฀of฀adjustment฀to฀a฀ new฀ environment฀ and฀ believed฀ that฀ the฀ Portuguese฀ did฀ not฀ sustain฀ a฀typically฀European฀stance.฀But฀perhaps฀partially฀in฀reaction฀to฀this฀ orientalism฀and฀the฀structures฀that฀supported฀it—together฀with฀other,฀ general฀ factors—an฀ institutional฀ apparatus฀ that฀ was฀ meant฀ to฀ be฀ a฀ monument฀to฀modernity฀was฀built฀throughout฀Brazil฀from฀mid-1960s฀ onward.฀It฀prolonged,฀though฀it฀gave฀a฀new฀turn฀to,฀the฀modernizing฀ efforts฀already฀being฀carried฀out฀since฀the฀thirties฀at฀the฀University฀of฀ São฀Paulo,฀which฀had฀led฀to฀a฀temporary฀(as฀we฀shall฀see)฀neglect฀of฀ scholars฀such฀as฀Freyre. This฀ new฀ apparatus—contrary฀ to฀ São฀ Paulo’s—was฀ backed฀ by฀ the฀ creation฀of฀a฀postgraduate฀system฀modeled฀on฀the฀North฀American฀one.฀ It฀forced฀anthropology฀into฀a฀university฀environment฀based฀on฀a฀departmental฀structure.฀As฀a฀by-product,฀anthropology’s฀ties฀with฀museums฀

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weakened฀ (even฀ when฀ departments฀ were฀ nominally฀ connected฀ with฀ them)฀to฀such฀an฀extent฀that฀the฀new฀situation฀has฀been฀entirely฀naturalized,฀especially฀by฀the฀younger฀generations.฀One฀important฀consequence฀ has฀been฀the฀avoidance฀of฀a฀confrontation฀with฀the฀issues฀involved,฀for฀ good฀or฀for฀ill,฀in฀this฀arranged฀marriage฀with฀the฀university. A฀large฀part฀of฀the฀generation฀that฀was฀responsible฀for฀this฀institution฀ building฀graduated฀in฀the฀United฀States,฀Great฀Britain,฀or฀France.฀To฀make฀ their฀project฀possible,฀they฀could฀count฀on฀the฀military฀governments฀ established฀from฀1964฀onward,฀with฀their฀dreams฀of฀national฀grandeur฀ channeled฀toward฀the฀development฀of฀science฀and฀technology.฀(This฀ situation฀ contrasts฀ with฀ what฀ happened฀ at฀ about฀ the฀ same฀ time฀ in฀ Argentina.)฀But฀such฀development฀also฀relied฀greatly฀on฀support฀from฀ the฀United฀States฀(coming฀mostly฀through฀the฀Ford฀Foundation),฀which฀ often฀was฀activated฀in฀the฀name฀of฀liberal฀ideals฀to฀counterbalance฀the฀ military฀regime฀itself.฀In฀order฀to฀make฀the฀best฀of฀this฀peculiar,฀doublebind฀ combination,฀ a฀ good฀ deal฀ of฀ political฀ ability฀ and฀ institutional฀ engineering฀was฀required฀of฀anthropologists,฀which฀in฀a฀way฀heralded฀ a฀double฀discourse฀to฀which฀I฀return฀later. All฀ of฀ this฀ resulted฀ in฀ an฀ impressive฀ intellectual฀ and฀ institutional฀ apparatus,฀ including฀ scientific฀ associations฀ such฀ as฀ the฀ earlierestablished฀ Brazilian฀ Association฀ of฀ Anthropology฀ (ABA)฀ and฀ the฀ National฀ Association฀ of฀ Graduate฀ Studies฀ and฀ Research฀ in฀ the฀ Social฀ Sciences฀ (ANPOCS).฀ This฀ development฀ included,฀ as฀ well,฀ a฀ notable฀ devotion฀ to฀ identities฀ such฀ as฀ that฀ of฀ the฀ anthropologist฀ and฀ to฀ the฀ discipline’s฀classics.1฀It฀was฀this฀anthropology฀to฀which฀Stocking฀reacted฀ in฀ his฀ 1982฀ article,฀ evincing฀ another฀ of฀ the฀ double฀ binds฀ in฀ which฀ Brazilian฀ “modern”฀ anthropology฀ has฀ found฀ itself.฀ The฀ discipline฀ is฀ at฀once฀modeled฀after฀central฀anthropologies฀and฀expected฀to฀provide฀ solutions฀to฀the฀dilemmas฀of฀those฀central฀anthropologies. We฀could,฀inspired฀by฀Foucault,฀consider฀in฀detail฀the฀questions฀of฀ power฀involved฀in฀this฀double฀bind,฀probably฀following฀a฀more฀refined฀ line฀of฀thought฀than฀the฀one฀Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀criticized.฀But฀even฀then฀ we฀might฀not฀go฀much฀beyond฀what฀today฀is฀already฀common฀sense,฀ risking฀ an฀ excess฀ of฀ complacency฀ toward฀ those฀ who฀ are฀ supposedly฀ dominated.฀Such฀complacency฀might฀end฀up฀revealing,฀in฀Nietzsche’s฀ terms,฀a฀spirit฀of฀resentment฀of฀the฀part฀of฀the฀supposedly฀dominated฀ against฀those฀who฀supposedly฀dominate.฀It฀might฀be฀preferable฀to฀be฀ more฀provocative,฀and฀I฀suggest฀that฀the฀irony฀of฀this฀situation฀(for฀both฀ sides)฀should฀not฀be฀overlooked,฀because฀being฀provocative฀might฀offer฀ greater฀food฀for฀thought฀than฀being฀complacent.

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III The฀burlesque฀image฀of฀a฀colonized฀elite฀taking฀its฀tea฀at฀five฀is฀provocative,฀ especially฀ when฀ the฀ ritual฀ was฀ slowly฀ being฀ abandoned฀ by฀ those฀who฀created฀it.฀Brazil฀is฀certainly฀exemplary฀in฀this฀respect.฀We฀ need฀ only฀ recall฀ the฀ powerful฀ social฀ and฀ political฀ influence฀ among฀ Brazilians฀ of฀ Comtean฀ positivism,฀ which฀ lasted฀ far฀ beyond฀ the฀ time฀ when,฀in฀France,฀it฀was฀reduced฀to฀the฀existence฀of฀a฀single฀museum฀ (sponsored,฀it฀seems,฀by฀Brazilian฀funds).฀Roberto฀Schwarz฀(1977)฀coined฀ the฀expression฀“ideas฀out฀of฀place”฀to฀describe฀the฀deep฀shifts฀in฀meaning฀ that฀result฀from฀such฀transpositions฀of฀context,฀although฀the฀expression฀ does฀not฀necessarily฀convey฀the฀organicity฀that฀these฀meanings฀attain฀ in฀new฀contexts. Would฀it฀make฀sense฀to฀view฀Brazil’s฀universalist฀“modern”฀anthropology฀in฀such฀terms?฀If฀so,฀what฀would฀be฀the฀way฀out฀if฀we฀took฀into฀ account฀Abaza฀and฀Stauth’s฀remarks฀about฀the฀predicaments฀of฀“native”฀ anthropology?฀These฀are฀difficult฀but฀crucial฀questions฀for฀a฀Brazilian฀ anthropologist฀ to฀ consider.฀ I฀ highlight฀ a฀ few฀ points฀ in฀ an฀ effort฀ to฀ prevent฀the฀discussion฀from฀being฀abandoned฀or฀put฀aside,฀which฀still฀ seems฀to฀be฀the฀dominant฀tendency. Brazilian฀anthropology฀(or฀“anthropology฀in฀Brazil,”฀should฀we฀prefer฀ to฀ emphasize฀ universalism)฀ has฀ attained฀ considerable฀ social฀ prestige฀ (and฀ size)฀ since฀ the฀ 1960s.฀ Its฀ public฀ influence฀ in฀ Brazil฀ might฀ seem฀ unimaginable฀to฀colleagues฀from฀the฀“center.”฀This฀influence฀pervades฀ the฀ media,฀ the฀ educational฀ system,฀ and฀ even฀ state฀ policy—as฀ in฀ the฀ case฀of฀the฀legalization฀of฀the฀use฀of฀some฀hallucinogenic฀substances฀ when฀taken฀in฀ritual฀contexts.฀A฀popular฀saying฀in฀Brazil฀warns฀that฀ “one฀should฀make฀no฀changes฀when฀a฀team฀is฀winning.”฀But฀maybe฀ this฀is฀exactly฀where฀we฀should฀begin,฀by฀examining฀more฀closely฀the฀ success฀of฀the฀anthropological฀“team.” Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀resorted฀to฀Bourdieu฀to฀explain฀a฀going-native฀attitude฀ on฀the฀part฀of฀Arab฀intellectuals.฀According฀to฀them,฀competition฀with฀ Western฀colleagues฀in฀the฀1970s฀and฀1980s฀consisted฀of฀“establishing฀ [Arab฀intellectuals’]฀own฀competence฀in฀a฀position฀of฀bargaining฀for฀the฀ ‘real’”฀(Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀1990:฀220).฀Access฀to฀information฀resources฀ became฀important฀in฀this฀competition.฀The฀same฀thing฀happened฀(and฀ still฀happens)฀in฀Brazil,฀but฀there,฀to฀a฀certain฀extent,฀the฀competition฀ became฀a฀frozen฀battle,฀faute฀de฀combattants.฀This฀was฀due฀to฀geopolitical฀ changes—to฀which฀the฀Middle฀East฀was,฀in฀contrasting฀ways,฀of฀course฀ also฀susceptible—that฀should฀not฀be฀ignored.฀In฀Brazil฀the฀construction฀ of฀ the฀ “modern”฀ apparatus฀ of฀ anthropology฀ in฀ the฀ 1960s฀ coincided฀

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with฀the฀great฀international฀attention฀paid฀to฀(and฀the฀tensions฀over)฀ Latin฀America,฀especially฀Cuba.฀This฀attention฀prolonged฀an฀interest฀in฀ Latin฀America,฀including฀Brazil,฀on฀the฀part฀of฀European฀and฀especially฀ American฀scholars฀that฀had฀been฀growing฀since฀the฀eve฀of฀the฀Second฀ World฀War.฀Foreign฀Brazilianists฀were฀salient฀characters฀in฀“anthropology฀ in฀ Brazil,”฀ serving฀ mostly฀ as฀ role฀ models.฀ Today,฀ however,฀ attention฀ to฀ Latin฀ America฀ has฀ decreased฀ considerably—with฀ some฀ variation฀ from฀country฀to฀country—not฀only฀in฀terms฀of฀foreign฀affairs฀but฀also,฀ revealingly,฀in฀US฀academic฀circles.฀Instead฀of฀becoming฀competitors,฀ Brazilianists฀ on฀ the฀ whole฀ simply฀ vanished,฀ particularly฀ the฀ seniors฀ among฀them. My฀point฀is฀that฀the฀Brazilianists’฀absence฀contributed฀decisively฀to฀ preventing฀the฀construction฀of฀a฀nativistic฀anthropology—analogous฀ to฀ the฀ kind฀ of฀ social฀ sciences฀ Abaza฀ and฀ Stauth฀ mention—as฀ an฀ internal฀ reaction.฀ I฀ also฀ think,฀ however,฀ that฀ the฀ ghostly฀ presence฀ of฀ the฀Brazilianists฀contributed฀to฀a฀more฀subtle฀development,฀which฀a฀ Brazilian฀anthropologist฀might฀describe฀by฀saying,฀“We฀are฀loyal฀to฀‘universal’฀anthropology,฀but฀at฀the฀same฀time,฀as฀self-proclaimed฀natives,฀ we฀insist฀on฀having฀a฀special฀knowledge฀and฀sensibility฀from฀which฀to฀ consider฀and฀deal฀with฀Brazil.” This฀development฀was฀associated฀with฀an฀anthropology฀done฀almost฀ exclusively฀within฀the฀country,฀an฀“anthropology฀at฀home,”฀avant฀la฀ lettre,฀which฀made฀possible฀the฀perpetuation฀of฀this฀ambiguous฀position,฀ also฀a฀sort฀of฀double฀bind.฀“Comparison”฀was฀a฀key฀notion฀in฀establishing฀ Brazil’s฀necessarily฀contrasting฀position,฀but฀comparisons฀were฀usually฀ constructed฀ in฀ binary฀ and฀ oppositional฀ terms,฀ with฀ no฀ systematic฀ research฀carried฀out฀abroad฀to฀support฀them.฀Their฀purpose฀was฀basically฀ only฀the฀creation฀of฀a฀counterpoint—a฀kind฀of฀“occidentalism”฀(Latour฀ 2000b:฀ 207).฀ This฀ produced฀ a฀ methodological฀ conundrum฀ that฀ was฀ overlooked฀ and฀ resulted฀ in฀ abstract—although฀ in฀ some฀ cases฀ very฀ suggestive—generalizations฀and฀a฀neglect฀of฀possible฀convergences฀or฀ symmetries.

IV I฀ would฀ like฀ to฀ illustrate฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologists’฀ ambivalence฀ by฀ commenting฀on฀a฀text฀of฀questionable฀taste฀published฀in฀1992฀by฀the฀ American฀anthropologist฀Paul฀Rabinow.฀He฀wrote฀it฀after฀a฀stay,฀in฀1987,฀ as฀a฀Fulbright฀visiting฀professor฀at฀the฀Museu฀Nacional฀(my฀institution)฀ in฀Rio฀de฀Janeiro.฀In฀his฀article,฀Rabinow฀conveyed฀a฀certain฀orientalizing฀ view,฀although฀disguised฀by฀a฀postmodern฀style฀that฀allowed฀him฀to฀

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make฀commonplace฀observations฀from฀an฀apparent,฀but฀not฀very฀convincing,฀distance. It฀is฀interesting฀to฀imagine฀whether฀today,฀after฀what฀has฀since฀happened฀ in฀ his฀ own฀ country,฀ Rabinow฀ would฀ still,฀ upon฀ arrival฀ at฀ the฀ airport,฀consider฀strange฀the฀attitude฀of฀Brazilian฀customs฀agents,฀heirs฀ to฀our฀dictatorship.฀At฀times฀his฀orientalizing฀seems฀to฀be฀a฀product฀of฀ misinformation฀on฀his฀part,฀and฀at฀times฀it฀seems฀to฀be฀a฀product฀of฀ ignorance฀or฀a฀desire฀on฀the฀part฀of฀his฀informants—anthropologists฀ included—to฀ attend฀ to฀ his฀ expectations.฀ When฀ he฀ writes฀ of฀ “one฀ of฀ the฀ many฀ formerly฀ coffee-covered฀ hills฀ punctuating฀ the฀ topography฀ around฀which฀modern฀Rio฀has฀expanded฀and฀in฀whose฀newly฀wooded฀ groves฀the฀syncretic฀candomblé฀cult฀is฀practised฀nightly”฀(1992:฀250),฀ he฀manages฀in฀a฀single฀sentence฀to฀exaggerate฀the฀number฀of฀hills฀in฀ Rio฀that฀were฀covered฀by฀coffee฀plantations฀in฀the฀nineteenth฀century;฀ guess฀wrongly฀that฀the฀woods฀on฀them฀represent฀recent฀reforestations;฀ confuse฀candomblé฀from฀Bahia฀with฀other,฀less฀internationally฀known฀ African-Brazilian฀cults;฀and฀ignore฀that฀at฀the฀time,฀those฀cults฀were฀ in฀large฀part฀being฀replaced฀in฀the฀region฀by฀Evangelical฀(Baptist฀and฀ Pentecostal)฀ churches฀ (although,฀ in฀ fairness,฀ this฀ was฀ not฀ yet฀ much฀ talked฀ about).฀ All฀ of฀ these฀ orientalizing฀ mistakes฀ seem฀ to฀ legitimate฀ the฀suspicions฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropologists฀regarding฀the฀competence฀ of฀North฀American฀colleagues฀to฀understand฀Brazil. But฀Rabinow฀also฀made฀other฀comments.2฀He฀described,฀for฀example,฀a฀ visit฀he฀witnessed฀of฀four฀African฀social฀scientists฀to฀the฀Museu฀Nacional.฀ He฀ mentioned฀ their฀ attack฀ on฀ Brazil’s฀ supposedly฀ harmonious฀ racial฀ reality฀and฀their฀denunciation฀of฀the฀dearth฀of฀black฀students฀and฀teachers฀ in฀Brazilian฀universities฀(our฀postgraduate฀department฀included).฀He฀ pointed฀out฀the฀defensive฀stance฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropologists฀on฀the฀ racial฀issue,฀which฀to฀them฀was฀either฀a฀strictly฀socioeconomic฀problem฀or฀ something฀of฀such฀cultural฀complexity฀and฀subtlety฀that฀generalization฀ was฀impossible฀without฀previous฀consideration฀of฀the฀contexts฀involved.฀ Rabinow฀also฀recalled฀the฀lack฀of฀interest฀on฀the฀part฀of฀anthropologists฀ at฀ the฀ Museu฀ regarding฀ the฀ Ford฀ Foundation’s฀ suggestion฀ that฀ they฀ organize฀a฀commemorative฀exhibit฀on฀the฀centennial฀of฀the฀abolition฀ of฀slavery.฀He฀mentioned฀another฀episode—similar฀to฀one฀recounted฀ by฀ Lévi-Strauss฀ in฀ Tristes฀ tropiques—when,฀ during฀ a฀ dinner฀ party฀ in฀ São฀Paulo,฀extremely฀sophisticated฀and฀cosmopolitan฀social฀scientists฀ demonstrated฀nostalgia฀for฀paternalistic฀relations฀with฀their฀maids฀and฀ performed฀the฀“sociologically฀objective฀absurdity฀of฀intelligent฀people฀ lamenting฀their฀future฀maid-less฀state฀when฀millions฀upon฀millions฀of฀ Brazilians฀are฀living฀near฀or฀below฀subsistence”฀(1992:฀258–59).

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Rabinow’s฀comments฀could฀well฀be฀discarded฀as฀purely฀anecdotal฀and,฀ once฀again,฀indicative฀of฀the฀foreign฀observer’s฀lack฀of฀sensibility.฀This฀is฀ what฀has฀usually฀happened,฀I฀myself฀having฀read฀his฀article฀only฀recently.฀ Really,฀one฀need฀not฀be฀an฀anthropologist฀to฀make฀such฀remarks,฀and฀ Rabinow฀himself฀admitted฀that฀he฀did฀not฀write฀an฀ethnography—as฀ indeed฀the฀mention฀of฀an฀“objective฀absurdity”฀seems฀to฀confirm.฀In฀ Brazil,฀incidentally,฀being฀an฀anthropologist฀can฀even฀get฀in฀the฀way฀ when฀it฀comes฀to฀such฀matters. It฀could฀also฀be฀pointed฀out฀that฀the฀African-Brazilian฀movement฀for฀ equal฀rights฀did฀not฀attribute,฀at฀least฀at฀the฀time,฀much฀validity฀to฀the฀ centennial฀of฀the฀abolition฀of฀slavery.฀But฀the฀truth฀is฀that฀Rabinow’s฀ commentary฀might฀be฀considered฀nothing฀more฀than฀simplistic฀if฀it฀did฀ not฀touch฀upon฀some฀taboos.฀The฀text’s฀lack฀of฀delicacy฀may฀have฀been฀ a฀good฀pretext฀on฀which฀to฀ignore฀it,฀plunging฀it฀into฀great฀silence.

V Without฀ intending฀ to฀ reach฀ definitive฀ conclusions,฀ I฀ suggest฀ that฀ Rabinow’s฀ outsider’s฀ point฀ of฀ view฀ reveals฀ the฀ extent฀ to฀ which฀ anthropology฀in฀Brazil฀created฀a฀neo-orientalism,฀despite฀its฀intention฀ of฀being฀part฀of฀the฀production฀of฀universal฀knowledge.฀An฀interesting฀ symptom฀of฀this฀is฀the฀way฀Brazilian฀anthropologists฀have฀rediscovered฀ and฀celebrated฀Gilberto฀Freyre฀as฀an฀ancestor,฀after฀a฀period฀of฀ostracizing฀ him฀ for฀ being฀ insufficiently฀ modern฀ and฀ universalist—a฀ period฀ that฀ was฀probably฀necessary฀for฀the฀establishment฀of฀a฀new฀hegemony฀and฀ during฀which฀“modernity”฀seemed฀to฀be฀an฀absolute฀criterion.฀Although฀ the฀notion฀of฀nation฀building฀was฀originally฀cast฀in฀a฀universalist฀mood฀ (Peirano฀1980;฀Stocking฀1982),฀such฀neo-orientalism฀has฀as฀its฀touchstone฀ an฀evident฀connection฀with฀nation฀building,฀which฀is฀often฀presented฀in฀ culturalist฀terms.3฀The฀anthropologists฀involved฀have฀class฀interests฀as฀ well—much฀less฀admitted฀than฀their฀interests฀in฀nation฀building.฀Such฀ class฀interests฀are฀reflected฀in฀a฀certain฀mannerism฀in฀which฀politeness฀ and฀etiquette฀attain฀unprecedented฀importance,฀constituting฀what฀from฀ an฀ outsider’s฀ viewpoint฀ might฀ be฀ described฀ as฀ a฀ triste฀ anthropology,฀ like฀the฀tropics. When฀Lévi-Strauss฀mentioned฀tristesse,฀his฀main฀reference฀was฀to฀the฀ conditions฀of฀indigenous฀people’s฀lives.฀To฀use฀the฀adjective฀triste฀to฀ describe฀intellectuals฀could฀be฀a฀revealing฀extension—already฀implied฀by฀ Lévi-Strauss—itself฀part฀of฀the฀confusion฀over฀who฀the฀“real”฀natives฀are.฀ If฀we฀were฀to฀consider฀anthropologists,฀who฀are฀supposed฀to฀have฀special฀ resources฀ for฀ dealing฀ with฀ the฀ country,฀ as฀ members฀ of฀ the฀ Brazilian฀

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elite,฀ we฀ would฀ have฀ to฀ decide฀ what฀ kinds฀ of฀ natives฀ they฀ are฀ and฀ what฀this฀dealing฀implies.฀Such฀ambiguity฀is฀so฀complex฀as฀to฀include฀ the฀observers฀themselves.฀There฀is฀no฀doubt฀that,฀in฀a฀certain฀sense,฀ colonial฀elites฀can฀appear฀more฀modern฀and฀secular฀than฀metropolitan฀ ones,฀as฀Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀proposed.฀This฀is฀especially฀so฀if฀we฀consider฀ that฀the฀colonial฀administrative฀apparatus฀in฀Brazil฀often฀found฀among฀ us฀less฀resistance฀to฀putting฀into฀practice฀a฀modern฀social฀engineering฀ project฀than฀was฀the฀case฀in฀that฀project’s฀ports฀of฀origin.฀This฀is฀an฀ important฀but฀often฀neglected฀point.฀Moreover,฀“ideas฀out฀of฀place”฀ are฀so฀precisely฀because฀they฀constitute฀a฀radicalizing฀of฀the฀original฀ models,฀ making฀ the฀ colonial฀ elites฀ “more฀ royalist฀ than฀ the฀ royals.”4฀ Brazilian฀anthropologists,฀for฀example,฀espouse฀such฀strict฀affirmations฀ of฀the฀universalism฀of฀the฀law฀and฀the฀separation฀of฀social฀realms฀that฀ affirmative฀action฀appears฀to฀them฀a฀transgression฀of฀both฀principles,฀ which฀in฀academic฀life฀are฀supposed฀to฀be฀represented฀by฀the฀absolute฀ primacy฀of฀merit.฀At฀the฀same฀time,฀they฀combine฀universalism฀in฀a฀ curious฀ way฀ with฀ a฀ neo-orientalism฀ that฀ denounces฀ such฀ actions฀ as฀ being฀(culturally)฀bred฀in฀the฀North. An฀interesting฀contrast฀exists฀between฀the฀situation฀on฀which฀Abaza฀ and฀Stauth฀commented฀and฀that฀of฀Brazil.฀In฀many฀Islamic฀countries,฀ commentators฀ denounce฀ the฀ incompleteness฀ of฀ Western฀ modernity,฀ which฀ smuggles฀ in฀ its฀ own฀ intrinsic,฀ nonmodern฀ values฀ and฀ thus฀ corroborates฀Bruno฀Latour’s฀claim฀(1991)฀that฀“we฀[in฀the฀West]฀have฀ never฀been฀modern.”฀In฀Brazil,฀such฀contraband฀is฀not฀denounced,฀and฀ whatever฀there฀is฀of฀the฀nonmodern฀in฀Western฀models฀is฀ignored.฀Such฀ unrecognized฀nonmodern฀elements฀constitute฀true฀blind฀spots,฀for฀if฀ we฀Brazilians฀acknowledged฀them,฀then฀we฀could฀not฀invoke฀Western฀ models฀to฀legitimate฀our฀modernity.฀Our฀response฀is฀the฀opposite฀of฀ that฀ in฀ Islamic฀ countries,฀ although฀ the฀ Islamic฀ response฀ may฀ be฀ a฀ reaction฀ to฀ a฀ similar฀ tendency฀ (as฀ shown฀ by฀ prerevolutionary฀ Iran).฀ That฀many฀Western฀countries฀are฀monarchies฀or฀have฀state฀churches,฀for฀ example,฀or฀that฀politics฀in฀the฀United฀States฀are฀permeated฀by฀religion,฀ is฀little฀explored฀in฀Brazil.฀We฀end฀up฀searching฀for฀an฀abstract฀model฀ of฀modernity฀with฀the฀ideological฀tenacity฀of฀a฀born-again฀Christian฀ and฀without฀any฀pragmatism. This฀is฀what฀happens,฀as฀I฀mentioned฀before,฀when฀Brazilian฀anthropologists฀embrace฀the฀“modern”฀principle฀of฀equality฀before฀the฀law.฀ From฀that฀stance,฀they฀cannot฀take฀minority฀rights฀into฀consideration฀or฀ recognize฀collective฀subjects.฀They฀ignore,฀in฀the฀name฀of฀universalism,฀ the฀ possibilities฀ of฀ affirmative฀ action฀ and฀ positive฀ discrimination,฀ even฀when฀someone฀like฀Rabinow฀calls฀this฀a฀“sociologically฀objective฀

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absurdity”฀in฀a฀country฀that฀has฀one฀of฀the฀worst฀income฀distributions฀in฀ the฀world฀and฀where—to฀use฀data฀relevant฀to฀the฀theme฀of฀this฀chapter— the฀average฀salary฀of฀blacks฀with฀undergraduate฀diplomas฀(themselves฀a฀ minority)฀is฀64฀percent฀of฀what฀is฀paid฀to฀whites฀of฀equivalent฀education.฀ Despite฀ Rorty’s฀ wishes,฀ language฀ games฀ turn฀ into฀ frozen฀ politics฀ in฀ Brazil,฀too.฀And฀even฀more฀alarming฀is฀that,฀like฀adults฀who฀learn฀a฀ second฀ language,฀ we฀ never฀ really฀ attain฀ the฀ necessary฀ familiarity฀ to฀ manipulate฀such฀games฀or฀to฀assess฀the฀way฀others฀manipulate฀them,฀ in฀ order฀ to฀ face฀ a฀ world฀ in฀ crisis฀ and฀ undergoing฀ a฀ rapid฀ change฀ of฀ civilizational฀models.

VI Anthropologists฀ in฀ Brazil฀ seem฀ to฀ resist฀ recognizing฀ their฀ complex฀ relationship฀to฀modernity,฀probably฀in฀part฀because฀of฀the฀previously฀ mentioned฀ class฀ interests,฀ which฀ make฀ it฀ difficult฀ to฀ objectify฀ this฀ profession฀of฀objectifiers—as฀Bourdieu฀proposed฀and฀Abaza฀and฀Stauth฀ recalled.฀But฀this฀difficulty฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropology฀also฀results฀from฀ the฀role฀that฀has฀been฀attributed฀to฀it,฀by฀its฀own฀practitioners฀as฀well฀ as฀others,฀a฀role฀associated฀with฀nation฀building.฀This฀attribution฀takes฀ place฀ even฀ in฀ cases฀ when฀ anthropology’s฀ quasi-systemic฀ connection฀ with฀nation฀building฀is฀neither฀intended฀nor฀made฀explicit.฀It฀is฀the฀ way฀ anthropology฀ is฀ received฀ in฀ Brazil—which฀ feeds฀ back฀ into฀ its฀ production—that฀is฀responsible฀for฀the฀connection. The฀anthropological฀version฀of฀nation฀building฀made฀of฀itself฀a฀speciality—in฀various฀ways฀and฀with฀great฀performative฀effect—by฀valorizing฀ native฀ discourses฀ to฀ an฀ extreme฀ that฀ set฀ anthropology฀ apart฀ from฀ political฀ science,฀ sociology,฀ and฀ economics.฀ In฀ the฀ variant฀ of฀ nation฀ building฀dominant฀in฀Brazil,฀in฀contrast฀with฀other฀cases฀(such฀as฀that฀of฀ Argentina),฀group฀formation฀often฀takes฀place฀independently฀of฀the฀state฀ or฀of฀political฀institutions฀in฀general.฀This฀opens฀a฀strategic฀space฀for฀ anthropology.฀I฀believe,฀however,฀that฀in฀occupying฀that฀space,฀Brazilian฀ anthropology฀ did฀ not฀ proceed฀ in฀ the฀ crucial฀ and฀ positive฀ direction฀ of฀simply฀letting฀grassroots฀phenomena฀lived฀by฀“informants”฀affect฀ anthropologists.฀Although฀it฀took฀a฀populist฀turn฀(in฀the฀sense฀of฀the฀ Russian฀narodniks),฀it฀tended฀to฀freeze฀and฀reify฀grassroots฀discourses,฀ to฀the฀detriment฀of฀analysis.฀This฀“going฀to฀the฀people”฀thus฀actually฀ represents฀the฀paradoxical฀threat฀of฀impoverishing฀ethnography,฀and฀ all฀the฀more฀so฀with฀ethnographers’฀recourse฀to฀technologies฀such฀as฀ tape฀recorders฀and฀cameras฀(not฀to฀mention฀the฀internet)—easy฀mimetic฀ solutions,฀but฀only฀in฀appearance.

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The฀next฀stage฀in฀the฀development฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropology,฀following฀the฀populist฀turn,฀has฀been฀the฀(paradoxical)฀abandonment฀of฀ the฀field฀itself,฀which฀ends฀up฀being฀replaced฀by฀general฀formulations฀ in฀the฀name฀of฀“culture,”฀this฀being฀connected฀to฀a฀certain฀fading฀of฀ the฀“referent.”฀Populism฀now฀proceeds—and฀this,฀too,฀is฀a฀crucial฀but฀ paradoxical฀twist—to฀assume฀its฀much฀less฀attractive฀Latin฀American฀ meaning฀(which฀may฀have฀always฀been฀there),฀in฀which฀anthropologists฀ take฀the฀place฀of฀“real”฀natives.5฀These฀general฀formulations฀tend฀to฀ reaffirm฀images฀according฀to฀which฀social฀groups฀perceive฀themselves,฀ somewhat฀the฀way,฀in฀the฀United฀States,฀the฀picto(graphic)฀art฀of฀Norman฀ Rockwell฀“portrayed฀Americans฀as฀Americans฀chose฀to฀see฀themselves”฀ (Finch฀1994:฀5).฀Divergent฀discourses฀are฀transformed฀into฀variants฀of฀ a฀single฀discourse,฀but฀still฀in฀the฀name฀of฀diversity.฀This฀occurs฀even฀ when฀it฀means฀a฀step-by-step฀reduction฀to฀this฀single฀discourse,฀which฀ does฀not฀lack฀sophistication.฀It฀is฀as฀if฀in฀the฀name฀of฀the฀nation฀we฀ proclaimed฀ its฀ tutorship,฀ and฀ in฀ the฀ name฀ of฀ diversity฀ we฀ ended฀ up฀ domesticating฀the฀“other.” The฀transformation฀of฀the฀entire฀world฀into฀a฀homogeneous฀field,฀ subject฀to฀the฀scrutiny฀of฀ethnography,฀is฀another฀aspect฀of฀an฀exacerbated฀ modernism฀ that฀ should฀ not฀ be฀ overlooked.฀ Here฀ the฀ distinctions฀ between฀the฀language฀of฀words฀(discourses)฀and฀the฀language฀of฀the฀ body฀and฀(other)฀acts฀are฀granted฀little฀importance,฀with฀consequences฀ for฀the฀purportedly฀valued฀“thick”฀descriptions.฀A฀skill฀is฀developed฀for฀ the฀construction฀of฀the฀text฀that฀permits฀a฀double฀reading฀through฀a฀ pattern฀(and฀an฀aesthetics)฀that฀increasingly฀leads฀to฀less฀ethnography฀ and฀ more฀ interpretation,฀ though฀ the฀ latter฀ may฀ be฀ disguised฀ as฀ the฀ native’s฀point฀of฀view.฀No฀loose฀threads฀seem฀to฀be฀allowed,฀although฀ these฀are฀typical฀of฀actual,฀ongoing฀research. On฀the฀other฀hand,฀in฀the฀name฀of฀models฀that฀supposedly฀replicate฀ those฀of฀the฀First฀World,฀government฀agencies฀impose฀upon฀researchers฀ bureaucratic฀and฀time฀limitations฀inspired฀by฀the฀“hard”฀sciences.฀These฀ limitations฀are฀almost฀unequaled฀anywhere฀else.฀And฀since฀this฀is฀done฀ particularly฀through฀the฀postgraduate฀system,฀the฀problems฀involved฀in฀ the฀arranged฀marriage฀with฀the฀university฀thus฀reemerge฀for฀anthropology,฀which,฀in฀Brazil,฀is฀a฀graduate฀degree.฀This฀is฀a฀good฀example฀of฀ a฀domestic฀attitude฀of฀trying฀to฀be฀“more฀royalist฀than฀the฀royals,”฀in฀ this฀case฀through฀the฀replication฀of฀an฀“audit฀culture”฀(Strathern฀2000)฀ and฀a฀reified฀science฀(Latour฀2000a)฀that฀find฀remarkable฀possibilities฀ of฀combination฀with฀our฀own฀old-style฀bureaucratic฀tradition,฀which฀ goes฀back฀to฀colonial฀times.

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VII It฀is฀precisely฀because฀anthropology฀in฀Brazil฀reached฀a฀high฀level฀of฀ organization฀that฀we฀should฀not฀be฀complacent฀toward฀it.฀It฀is฀evident฀ that฀anthropology฀has฀contributed฀to฀the฀self-knowledge฀of฀a฀vast฀and฀ complex฀ country.฀ The฀ anthropologist,฀ in฀ this฀ case,฀ has฀ become฀ an฀ informant฀to฀the฀public฀about฀its฀own฀society.฀This฀trend฀reinforces฀the฀ production฀of฀digestible,฀mass-media฀anthropology.฀Here฀we฀distance฀ ourselves฀from฀the฀“esotericism”฀of฀scientific฀communities฀noted฀by฀ Thomas฀Kuhn฀(1970):฀the฀objective฀is฀a฀self-recognition฀of฀society฀that฀ at฀the฀same฀time฀stands฀for฀its฀(re)construction.฀In฀this฀way฀the฀anthropologist฀becomes฀part฀of฀a฀great฀national฀project฀and฀is฀often฀envied฀ by฀colleagues฀in฀other฀disciplines.6฀Anthropology฀in฀Brazil฀is฀almost฀a฀ mass฀phenomenon,฀closer฀to฀North฀American฀models฀than฀to฀European฀ones,฀contrary฀to฀what฀Stocking฀supposed฀about฀its฀scope฀and฀to฀ what฀ Rabinow฀ said฀ about฀ the฀ predominance฀ of฀ a฀ French฀ influence฀ in฀the฀country,฀which฀in฀fact฀has฀rapidly฀receded.฀At฀the฀same฀time,฀ the฀ coincidence฀ of฀ its฀ reorganization฀ and฀ growth฀ in฀ scale฀ with฀ the฀ development฀ of฀ a฀ postgraduate฀ system฀ closely฀ surveyed฀ by฀ the฀ state฀ has฀allowed฀for฀the฀maintenance฀of฀a฀high฀level฀of฀organizational฀and฀ intellectual฀homogeneity. The฀other฀side฀of฀the฀picture฀is฀that฀it฀is฀difficult฀to฀find฀in฀this฀anthropology฀a฀moment฀for฀elaborations฀of฀greater฀complexity.฀If฀space฀were฀ made฀for฀such฀considerations,฀it฀would฀put฀us฀in฀the฀privileged฀position฀ of฀discussing฀serious฀contemporary฀issues฀and฀dilemmas฀in฀dialogue฀ with฀other฀groups฀and฀individuals฀who฀deal฀with฀them.฀But฀contrary฀ to฀Stocking’s฀belief,฀Brazilian฀anthropologists฀do฀not฀face฀the฀“malaise”฀ and฀the฀crisis฀of฀anthropology.฀The฀critique฀of฀textual฀representation฀of฀ the฀1980s฀and฀1990s,฀for฀instance,฀and฀further฀developments฀related฀to฀ it,฀encountered฀strong฀resistance฀among฀us.7฀It฀did฀so฀not฀because฀we฀ found฀other฀solutions฀but฀because฀recognizing฀problems฀and฀obstacles฀ that฀ might฀ undermine฀ the฀ public฀ authority฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ is฀ (like฀ the฀systematic฀use฀of฀literature฀from฀outside฀the฀discipline)฀not฀a฀part฀ of฀ our฀ anthropology.฀ Some฀ of฀ the฀ critique฀ was฀ eventually฀ absorbed,฀ but฀ it฀ was฀ relieved฀ of฀ its฀ cutting฀ edge฀ in฀ a฀ “doing฀ prose฀ without฀ acknowledgment”฀sort฀of฀way.฀It฀is฀difficult฀to฀find฀in฀this฀“NormanRockwellian”฀anthropology฀a฀place฀for฀that฀which฀might฀threaten฀it.฀ It฀is฀revealing฀that฀people’s฀sensibilities฀regarding฀such฀an฀enterprise฀ are฀very฀acute,฀if฀not฀paranoid.฀The฀exercise฀that฀has฀sometimes฀been฀ suggested฀elsewhere—that฀of฀not฀taking฀ourselves฀too฀seriously—is฀in฀ this฀case฀entirely฀out฀of฀context.

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But฀none฀of฀this฀is฀outwardly฀evident,฀for฀both฀public฀success฀and฀ the฀ legitimacy฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ depend฀ on฀ its฀ projecting฀ an฀ image฀ of฀strict฀observance฀of฀scientific฀objectivity.฀Such฀observance฀is฀often฀ identified฀with฀a฀ritualistic฀reference฀to฀(and฀reverence฀for)฀the฀classics,฀ which฀is฀the฀means฀through฀which฀anthropologists฀seek฀to฀distinguish฀ themselves฀from฀their฀colleagues฀in฀other฀disciplines,฀as฀well฀as฀from฀ media฀professionals.8฀Such฀rituals฀constitute฀our฀“tea฀at฀five,”฀when,฀ for฀ example,฀ we฀ refuse฀ to฀ recognize฀ the฀ discussions—elsewhere฀ very฀ lively฀today—of฀the฀Eurocentrism฀of฀Weberianism.฀And฀it฀is฀this฀subtle฀ combination฀of฀universalism฀and฀neo-orientalism฀that฀seems฀to฀confuse฀ observers฀ like฀ Stocking,฀ who฀ complain฀ of฀ a฀ lack฀ of฀ originality.฀ It฀ is฀ necessary฀to฀underscore฀that฀the฀public฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropology฀is฀ limited฀ almost฀ exclusively฀ to฀ the฀ country฀ but฀ not฀ necessarily฀ to฀ the฀ discipline:฀ hence฀ the฀ extreme฀ importance฀ of฀ publishing฀ books฀ and฀ appearing฀ in฀ the฀ media.฀ This฀ inward฀ orientation฀ has,฀ incidentally,฀ served฀to฀create฀an฀autonomous฀system฀of฀evaluation฀of฀the฀national฀ anthropological฀production฀and฀to฀minimize฀the฀domination฀of฀English฀ as฀a฀lingua฀franca฀in฀Brazil฀in฀a฀manner฀that฀is฀difficult฀to฀recognize฀from฀ the฀“center.”฀The฀production฀of฀anthropological฀knowledge฀directed฀ outside฀the฀country—but฀in฀this฀case฀restricted฀to฀the฀discipline—seldom฀ constitutes฀more฀than฀an฀eventual฀by-product. Perhaps฀ this฀ other฀ side฀ of฀ nation฀ building฀ could฀ emerge฀ only฀ in฀ these฀ contradictory฀ times,฀ when฀ the฀ myth฀ of฀ globalization฀ assaults฀ us,฀ together฀ with฀ concrete฀ entities฀ such฀ as฀ transnational฀ bodies฀ and฀ networks฀that฀constitute฀shared฀references฀that฀impinge฀even฀on฀what฀ were฀until฀recently฀“local”฀issues,฀such฀as฀Indian฀land฀claims฀(Velho฀ 2000).฀Only฀now฀has฀the฀cosmos฀of฀nation฀building—which฀certainly฀ constitutes฀a฀vital฀force—begun฀to฀reveal฀more฀clearly฀its฀restrictions,฀ which฀menace฀the฀previously฀mentioned฀success฀of฀the฀“team.”฀The฀ normative฀ presuppositions฀ of฀ our฀ activity฀ now฀ emerge฀ disguised฀ as฀ scholarly฀common฀sense฀much฀more฀than฀in฀the฀case฀of฀the฀explicit฀ search฀ for฀ the฀ “good฀ society”฀ that฀ political฀ scientists฀ inherited฀ from฀ philosophy.฀Room฀is฀made฀for฀other,฀vaster฀horizons. Part฀of฀Brazilian฀ethnology—which฀is฀synonymous฀with฀the฀study฀of฀ Indian฀groups—seems฀already฀to฀have฀escaped฀the฀constraints฀that฀bind฀ anthropology฀to฀nation฀building฀and฀to฀the฀combination฀of฀universalism฀ with฀ neo-orientalism.฀ This฀ is฀ significant฀ because,฀ although฀ only฀ a฀ minority฀of฀Brazilian฀anthropologists฀actually฀engages฀in฀ethnological฀ research,฀Indians฀have฀great฀iconic฀meaning฀for฀the฀country฀and฀for฀the฀ discipline฀itself.฀Indigenous฀land฀claims฀have฀become,฀as฀in฀Australia,฀ a฀key฀issue.฀Thanks฀to฀these฀new฀developments,฀Indian฀groups฀have฀

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reemerged฀all฀over฀the฀country—not฀only฀in฀the฀Amazon฀but฀even฀in฀ the฀urbanized฀South-Southeast฀and฀in฀the฀Northeast—and฀the฀Indian฀ population฀ (contrary฀ to฀ nation-building฀ expectations),฀ instead฀ of฀ disappearing,฀is฀increasing฀faster฀than฀the฀population฀as฀a฀whole.฀The฀ same฀may฀be฀said฀of฀the฀group฀of฀anthropologists฀who฀study฀religion,฀most฀ of฀whom฀are฀well฀aware—despite฀the฀“disenchantment”฀argument—of฀ religion’s฀persistent฀power฀of฀conversion฀and฀public฀presence฀and฀of฀ its฀increasing฀diversity,฀contrary฀to฀scholarly฀common฀sense฀and฀also฀ to฀many฀nation-building฀expectations฀(Velho฀2000). On฀ the฀ other฀ hand,฀ whereas฀ for฀ practitioners฀ of฀ empire-building฀ anthropologies,฀doing฀“anthropology฀at฀home”฀may฀be฀a฀way฀of฀exorcising฀ empire฀ building,฀ for฀ nation-building฀ anthropologies฀ it฀ is฀ not฀ necessarily฀ liberating.฀ It฀ may฀ become฀ compulsively฀ repetitious฀ and฀ self-referential฀when฀“home”฀is฀interpreted฀in฀a฀restricted฀sense.฀Not฀ to฀mention฀that฀“home”฀can฀become฀a฀tricky฀notion฀in฀a฀country฀as฀ vast,฀varied,฀and฀unequal฀as฀Brazil.฀After฀all฀is฀said฀and฀done,฀carrying฀ the฀ same฀ imaginary฀ passport฀ is฀ no฀ guarantee฀ of฀ being฀ closer฀ to฀ the฀ “natives.”฀In฀any฀case,฀the฀number฀of฀studies฀done฀outside฀the฀country฀ by฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologists฀ has฀ begun฀ to฀ increase.฀ There฀ has฀ been฀ an฀equal฀increase฀in฀the฀number฀of฀anthropologists฀working฀outside฀ academic฀circles฀(in฀nongovernmental฀organizations,฀for฀instance),฀who฀ are฀exposed฀to฀other฀influences฀and฀networks.฀As฀perceptions฀change฀ within฀society฀(and฀in฀politics),฀it฀is฀fair฀to฀expect฀that฀Minerva’s฀owl฀ will฀finally฀ruffle฀its฀feathers,฀even฀if,฀alas,฀in฀a฀reactive฀manner. What฀can฀be฀substituted฀for฀this฀pervasive฀atmosphere฀of฀nation฀ building฀that,฀being฀quasi-systemic,฀goes฀far฀beyond฀individual฀intentions฀ or฀ accomplishments?฀ The฀ answer,฀ again,฀ will฀ most฀ likely฀ reflect฀geopolitics฀to฀an฀extent฀not฀usually฀recognized,฀as,฀for฀example,฀ in฀Brazil’s฀recently฀intensified฀relationship฀with฀Argentina฀and฀the฀ rest฀of฀South฀America.฀Contrary฀to฀what฀Rabinow฀observed,฀Buenos฀ Aires฀ no฀ longer฀ seems฀ more฀ distant฀ than฀ Paris฀ (Velho฀ 1997).฀ But฀ one฀should฀also฀recognize฀that฀the฀“pure”฀science฀of฀anthropology฀ in฀Brazil฀did฀develop฀thanks฀to฀the฀“impurity”฀of฀nation฀building,฀ something฀ even฀ the฀ military฀ regimes฀ (1964–85)฀ did฀ not฀ overlook.฀ Basic฀anthropological฀research฀was฀a฀sui฀generis฀kind฀of฀“application”฀ (as฀in฀“applied”฀anthropology),฀paradoxically฀and฀uniquely฀inherited฀ from฀more฀traditional฀intellectuals฀and฀essayists,฀such฀as฀Freyre.฀It฀is฀ most฀notably฀unique฀in฀comparison฀with฀“applications”฀from฀other฀ sciences,฀even฀though฀the฀term฀itself—“applied”฀anthropology—is฀ still฀ close฀ to฀ anathema฀ among฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologists,฀ as฀ if฀ to฀ maintain฀a฀distance฀from฀“technology.”

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Brazilian฀anthropology฀competes฀more฀easily,฀however,฀with฀what฀ comes฀from฀outside฀the฀country,฀giving฀anthropologists฀a฀surprising,฀ although฀limited,฀advantage฀vis-à-vis฀colleagues฀from฀harder฀sciences.฀ Yet฀ in฀ contrast฀ with฀ similar฀ cases฀ of฀ the฀ combination฀ of฀ purity฀ and฀ impurity฀examined฀by฀Bruno฀Latour฀(1987),฀in฀Brazil฀the฀combination฀ made฀specialization฀difficult฀and฀ideologized฀the฀discipline’s฀routine,฀ for฀the฀“object”฀that฀was฀created฀by฀its฀activity฀was฀itself฀a฀rhetoric฀of฀ the฀discipline,฀immediately฀communicable฀in฀the฀name฀of฀science฀and฀ at฀the฀service฀of฀nation฀building.฀Thus,฀besides฀being฀a฀practice,฀this฀ rhetoric฀also฀constitutes฀a฀real฀second฀discourse,฀although฀this฀discourse฀ is฀ directed฀ toward฀ a฀ different฀ public฀ and฀ is฀ employed฀ in฀ a฀ different฀ context฀ from฀ the฀ discourse฀ of฀ pure฀ science฀ and฀ does฀ not฀ necessarily฀ have฀the฀same฀agents฀as฀its฀main฀exponents.฀Through฀different฀channels฀ and฀ brokers฀ it฀ even฀ constitutes฀ a฀ kind฀ of฀ “pop฀ anthropology”฀ as฀ a฀ strategic฀ part฀ of฀ a฀ “culture.”฀ Also฀ in฀ contrast฀ to฀ Latour’s฀ cases฀ vis-àvis฀the฀discourse฀of฀pure฀science,฀it฀is฀closer฀to฀splitting฀(as฀in฀Gregory฀ Bateson’s฀ use฀ of฀ double-bind฀ theory)฀ than฀ to฀ concealment—which฀ is฀ exactly฀what฀permits฀it฀to฀gain฀a฀discursive฀form. What฀can฀replace฀nation฀building?฀Human฀rights?฀The฀empowerment฀ of฀subordinate฀groups?฀Concern฀with฀the฀environment฀or฀awareness฀ of฀our฀part฀in฀it?฀Cosmopolitics?฀Technology?฀Global฀justice?฀A฀mix฀of฀ some฀or฀all฀of฀these?฀Something฀else?฀And฀what฀will฀be฀the฀outcome฀of฀ this฀replacement?฀Whatever฀the฀answers฀to฀these฀questions,฀they฀may฀ not฀be฀a฀matter฀of฀choice,฀for฀one฀thing฀seems฀sure:฀the฀increasing฀spread฀ of฀democracy฀makes฀it฀increasingly฀difficult฀for฀intellectuals฀to฀act฀as฀ privileged฀spokespersons฀(indeed,฀in฀many฀cases,฀strictly฀spokesmen)฀for฀ societies฀that฀presume฀to฀formulate฀the฀relevant฀issues฀and฀disregard฀ those฀that฀go฀against฀their฀set฀agendas.฀Not฀only฀might฀nation฀building฀ be฀replaced,฀but฀whatever฀comes฀in฀will฀probably฀not฀occupy฀the฀same฀ place฀and฀will฀probably฀be฀less฀mimetic฀of฀what฀Latour฀(2001)฀called฀ “regimes฀ of฀ enunciation,”฀ which฀ have฀ to฀ do฀ primarily฀ with฀ religion฀ and฀revelation฀or฀with฀group฀formation.฀It฀will฀refuse฀to฀mimic฀such฀ regimes฀not฀in฀order฀to฀become฀“purely”฀scientific฀but,฀on฀the฀contrary,฀ simply฀in฀order฀to฀be฀better฀able—albeit฀weakly฀from฀the฀viewpoint฀of฀ science—to฀display฀the฀networks฀of฀which฀it฀(and฀the฀anthropologist)฀ is฀ a฀ part฀ and฀ which฀ in฀ fact฀ reach฀ far฀ beyond฀ academia฀ and฀ are฀ not฀ restricted฀to฀the฀channeling฀of฀undistorted฀information. Will฀ we฀ then฀ maintain฀ a฀ splitting฀ of฀ the฀ discourses฀ of฀ pure฀ and฀ impure฀sciences?฀Or฀will฀we฀take฀a฀turn฀toward฀the฀concealment฀of฀a฀ second฀discourse,฀transformed฀into฀a฀muted฀practice?฀Perhaps฀the฀two฀ discourses฀ have฀ been฀ feeding฀ on฀ each฀ other฀ all฀ along—lending,฀ for฀

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instance,฀political฀authority฀to฀science—so฀that฀we฀will฀finally฀have฀a฀ single฀discourse,฀a฀middle฀path฀close฀to฀actual฀research฀practice,฀that฀ supersedes฀not฀only฀the฀discourse฀of฀nation฀building฀but฀also฀that฀of฀a฀ reified฀Science.฀This฀single฀discourse฀will฀not฀exclude฀all฀sorts฀of฀mixtures฀ and฀the฀full฀recognition—at฀last!—of฀its฀connection฀to฀a฀collective฀in฀the฀ wider฀sense฀of฀the฀term฀and฀the฀implications฀of฀the฀collective฀nature฀of฀ its฀production฀for฀claims฀to฀authorship,฀individual฀or฀corporate. Be฀that฀as฀it฀may,฀it฀is฀part฀of฀another฀story—a฀story฀that฀could฀conduct฀ Brazilian฀ anthropologists฀ beyond฀ the฀ circle฀ of฀ chalk฀ that฀ has฀ circumscribed฀ us฀ for฀ so฀ long,฀ so฀ that฀ our฀ double฀ binds฀ might฀ prove฀ more฀ productive฀ and฀ provide฀ practical,฀ concrete฀ answers฀ to฀ today’s฀ questions.฀The฀trick฀will฀consist,฀therefore,฀in฀revising฀the฀models฀of฀ reference฀not฀only฀among฀us฀but,฀above฀all,฀at฀their฀main฀source.฀We฀ might฀in฀this฀way฀cease฀being฀exclusively฀narcissistic฀specialists฀in฀our฀ own฀society,฀a฀convenient฀role฀in฀which,฀it฀sometimes฀seems,฀some฀of฀ our฀colleagues฀from฀the฀North฀also฀prefer฀to฀see฀us฀cast,฀as฀long฀as฀they฀ have฀the฀last฀disciplinary฀word฀on฀the฀supposedly฀“neutral”฀forms฀of฀ presentation.฀ Instead฀ of฀ creating,฀ once฀ more,฀ an฀ orientalist฀ distance฀ from฀the฀central฀countries,฀we฀will฀be฀distancing฀ourselves฀from฀the฀ dominant฀images฀we฀have฀of฀them.฀Such฀images฀have฀in฀fact฀prevented฀ genuine฀proximity.฀For฀this฀we฀should฀adopt฀a฀stance฀of฀attentiveness฀ and฀affordance฀(Ingold฀2000)฀in฀place฀of฀a฀simultaneously฀nihilist฀and฀ omnipotent฀ social฀ constructionist฀ one,฀ which฀ purports฀ that฀ we฀ can฀ inscribe฀meaning฀in฀a฀world฀otherwise฀devoid฀of฀it. At฀ the฀ same฀ time,฀ inspired฀ by฀ C.฀ S.฀ Peirce฀ and฀ Sherlock฀ Holmes,฀ we฀ should฀ substitute฀ a฀ cult฀ of฀ pictography฀ for฀ a฀ symptomatology,฀ a฀ decryptography฀ that฀ collects฀ evidence฀ horizontally฀ (or฀ across฀ the฀ board,฀so฀to฀speak),฀thus฀disrespecting฀limits฀(Eco฀and฀Sebeok฀1988).฀ For฀this฀it฀will฀be฀crucial฀to฀observe฀other฀possibilities฀in฀the฀world฀ to฀help฀break฀the฀hypnotic฀effect฀of฀the฀“occidentalist”฀models.฀Just฀ as฀ the฀ opposition฀ between฀ “world฀ religions”฀ and฀ “local฀ religions”฀ tends฀to฀become฀virtually฀obsolete฀in฀times฀of฀globalization,฀the฀same฀ may฀happen฀with฀“world฀anthropologies”—taken฀in฀a฀restrictive฀and฀ nongeneralizable฀way—versus฀“local฀anthropologies.”฀So-called฀SouthSouth฀ relations—not฀ necessarily฀ in฀ a฀ spatial฀ sense,฀ for฀ they฀ could฀ include,฀say,฀Siberia—might,฀it฀is฀hoped,฀have฀a฀vivifying฀and฀strategic฀ (even฀ therapeutic)฀ effect฀ in฀ this฀ respect.฀ The฀ change฀ from฀ nation฀ building฀might฀also฀help฀overcome฀the฀risks฀of฀incommensurability.฀ And฀all฀of฀this฀while฀taking฀full฀advantage—before฀we฀ourselves฀become฀ Alexandrian—of฀the฀knowledge฀and฀human฀resources฀we฀have฀been฀ able฀to฀accumulate.

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Because฀I฀have฀already฀mentioned฀tristesse,฀I฀can฀recall฀what฀Spinoza฀ described฀ in฀ the฀ Ethics฀ as฀ affections฀ of฀ sorrow.฀ Who฀ knows฀ whether฀ henceforth฀we฀might฀not฀make฀a฀fuller฀transition฀from฀such฀affections฀ to฀those฀of฀joy,฀which฀increase฀our฀power฀of฀action฀in฀the฀context฀of฀ wider฀and฀richer฀attachments฀and฀mediations?

Notes 1.฀ Stocking,฀symptomatically,฀called฀attention฀to฀the฀fact฀that฀I฀capitalized฀ “Anthropology”฀in฀an฀article฀of฀the฀same฀issue฀of฀Ethnos฀(Velho฀1982),฀suggesting฀that฀although฀I฀mentioned฀a฀conflict฀between฀“local฀demands”฀and฀“Anthropology฀as฀a฀science,”฀my฀capitalization฀assumed฀“the฀ultimate฀indivisibility฀of฀ the฀latter”฀(Stocking฀1982:฀181). 2.฀ Besides฀ making฀ indelicate฀ remarks฀ about฀ the฀ Brazilian฀ colleagues฀ who฀ hosted฀him฀in฀the฀country,฀Rabinow฀meant฀his฀paper฀to฀be฀a฀post฀scriptum฀to฀ Lévi-Strauss’s฀Tristes฀tropiques.฀But฀the฀lack฀of฀finesse฀on฀his฀part฀(which฀includes฀ the฀confession฀of฀his฀intentions)฀shows฀the฀limitations฀of฀his฀apprenticeship. 3.฀ In฀his฀1982฀article฀in฀Ethnos,฀Stocking฀referred฀to฀the฀“anthropology฀of฀ nation฀building,”฀in฀contrast฀to฀that฀of฀empire฀building,฀a฀classification฀that฀ has฀since฀become฀canonical. 4.฀ This฀seems฀to฀be฀the฀case฀when,฀in฀countries฀such฀as฀Brazil,฀the฀politics฀ of฀free฀commerce฀are฀pursued฀in฀a฀way฀that฀seems฀more฀purist฀than฀that฀of฀the฀ central฀countries฀themselves.฀For฀instance,฀when฀outsiders฀transform฀favelas฀ (shantytowns)฀ into฀ international฀ tourist฀ attractions,฀ the฀ Brazilian฀ elites฀ are฀ caught฀off฀balance.฀They฀cannot฀understand฀how฀people฀from฀the฀First฀World฀ might฀find฀value฀in฀favelas,฀which฀for฀them฀are฀a฀shameful฀sign฀of฀poverty฀and฀ backwardness—again,฀the฀double฀bind. 5.฀ Elsewhere฀ (Velho฀ 1982)฀ I฀ have฀ discussed฀ what฀ I฀ call฀ “anthropological฀ populism.” 6.฀ Parodying฀a฀colonial฀writer฀who฀discussed฀blacks,฀Indians,฀and฀whites,฀a฀ political฀scientist฀commented฀that฀“Brazil฀is฀the฀political฀scientists’฀hell,฀the฀ sociologists’฀purgatory฀and฀the฀anthropologists’฀paradise.” 7.฀ I฀ think฀ a฀ creative฀ appraisal฀ of฀ anthropology฀ as฀ a฀ whole฀ should฀ reincorporate฀Gregory฀Bateson’s฀work฀(1904–80),฀especially฀if฀we฀intend฀to฀make฀a฀ nonregressive฀critique฀of฀culturalism.฀In฀this฀chapter฀I฀have฀only฀hinted฀at฀my฀ appreciation฀ of฀ Bateson฀ through฀ my฀ frequent฀ references฀ to฀ his฀ double-bind฀ theory,฀suggesting฀that฀its฀application฀might฀be฀a฀way฀to฀pursue฀some฀of฀the฀ topics฀here฀developed.

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8.฀ Anthropologists฀ also฀ attempt฀ to฀ use฀ certain฀ key฀ “scientific”฀ concepts,฀ such฀ as฀ “culture,”฀ to฀ distinguish฀ themselves,฀ but฀ the฀ very฀ success฀ of฀ the฀ discipline฀ makes฀ this฀ increasingly฀ difficult.฀ Anthropologists฀ lose฀ control฀ of฀ (and฀the฀monopoly฀over)฀such฀concepts฀when฀segments฀of฀the฀general฀public฀ incorporate฀ and฀ reinterpret฀ them.฀ In฀ a฀ recent฀ television฀ documentary,฀ for฀ example,฀ the฀ host฀ asked฀ an฀ indigenous฀ man฀ the฀ name฀ of฀ a฀ dance฀ that฀ had฀ just฀been฀performed฀and฀got฀the฀following฀answer:฀“This฀dance฀is฀called฀The฀ Ritual.”

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f o u r t e e n

World Anthropologies Questions

Johannes Fabian

C

ould฀the฀topic฀of฀this฀book,฀and฀the฀symposium฀on฀which฀it฀is฀based,฀ be฀reformulated฀as฀a฀series฀of฀questions?฀Do฀we฀need฀to฀think฀about฀ world฀anthropologies฀instead฀of,฀or฀in฀addition฀to,฀world฀anthropology?฀ Can฀and฀should฀the฀centers฀of฀the฀discipline฀give฀up฀power฀or฀avoid฀ creating฀hegemonic฀structures฀that฀prevent฀world฀anthropologies฀from฀ emerging?฀Should฀institutions฀that฀are฀located฀and฀individuals฀who฀are฀ employed฀in฀presumed฀centers฀of฀the฀discipline฀be฀taken฀to฀represent฀ world฀anthropology฀(in฀the฀singular),฀and฀if฀so,฀can฀they฀nevertheless฀ be฀expected฀to฀further฀the฀cause฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀(in฀the฀plural)?฀ Are฀there฀perhaps฀already฀kinds฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀being฀practiced฀ to฀which฀disciplinary฀recognition฀should฀not฀be฀denied,฀although฀they฀ define฀themselves฀largely฀against฀the฀dominant฀discourse฀and฀practice฀ of฀anthropology? If฀you—we—were฀to฀agree฀that฀these฀questions฀fairly฀sum฀up฀what฀ anthropologists฀need฀to฀discuss,฀I฀would฀be฀bothered.฀Not฀because฀my฀ catalogue฀of฀questions฀may฀be฀incomplete฀(and฀perhaps฀inaccurate),1฀ but฀rather฀because฀it฀seems฀unlikely฀that฀the฀organizers,฀the฀sponsor,฀ or฀the฀participants฀in฀the฀symposium฀could฀have฀responded฀to฀these฀ questions฀negatively.฀Such฀positivity฀does฀not฀bode฀well฀for฀a฀critical฀ debate. I฀must฀confess฀that฀the฀organizers’฀statement฀about฀the฀symposium,฀ because฀it฀formulated฀a฀program฀I฀could฀not฀but฀support,฀at฀first฀left฀me฀ paralyzed;฀I฀wanted฀to฀opt฀out.฀Only฀after฀much฀agonizing฀did฀I฀begin฀ to฀see฀the฀shape฀of฀a฀possible฀contribution.฀It฀occurred฀to฀me฀that฀our฀ discussion฀could฀profit฀from฀our฀asking฀a฀number฀of฀seemingly฀simple,฀

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yet฀ fundamental,฀ questions฀ about฀ anthropology.฀ They฀ are฀ questions฀ that฀cannot฀be฀answered฀yes฀or฀no,฀because฀they฀are฀not฀about฀whether฀ this฀or฀that฀action฀should฀be฀taken฀or฀whether฀we฀think฀this฀or฀that฀ development฀ has฀ occurred.฀ Rather,฀ they฀ are฀ intended฀ to฀ encourage฀ examination฀of฀what฀usually฀goes฀without฀saying฀as฀each฀of฀us฀toils฀at฀ his฀or฀her฀work.

Who? Who฀is฀(belongs฀to,฀represents)฀anthropology?฀A฀century฀ago฀a฀list฀of฀ names,฀short฀enough฀to฀be฀remembered฀by฀those฀included,฀would฀have฀ been฀a฀possible฀answer.฀Today,฀that฀list฀having฀grown฀enormously,฀it฀ might฀still฀be฀possible฀to฀name฀names,฀but฀the฀result,฀interesting฀as฀it฀ might฀be฀for,฀say,฀commercial฀promotion฀or฀governmental฀surveillance— for฀those฀who฀want฀to฀sell฀us฀something฀or฀keep฀an฀eye฀on฀us—would฀ hardly฀be฀considered฀meaningful฀by฀those฀who฀are฀on฀the฀list.฀Not฀an฀ accumulation฀ of฀ certified฀ practitioners฀ but฀ rather฀ agency฀ is฀ queried฀ when฀ we฀ ask฀ the฀ “who?”฀ question,฀ which฀ must฀ be฀ asked฀ whenever฀ we฀get฀together,฀as฀we฀did฀during฀the฀symposium,฀to฀discuss฀courses฀ of฀action. Who฀acts฀when฀anthropology฀is฀practiced?฀The฀history฀and฀theory฀ of฀science฀seem฀to฀hold฀one฀ready฀answer:฀Agency฀in฀anthropology฀is฀ located฀in฀its฀organization฀and฀recognition฀as฀an฀academic฀discipline.฀ True,฀ anthropologists฀ have฀ always฀ found฀ it฀ difficult฀ to฀ recognize฀ themselves฀ in฀ Thomas฀ Kuhn’s฀ vision฀ of฀ “normal฀ science,”฀ but฀ on฀ the฀whole฀we฀play฀along฀when฀we฀present฀ourselves฀collectively฀as฀a฀ discipline.฀Critical฀reflection฀has฀repeatedly฀denounced฀as฀hypocritical฀ not฀only฀the฀grand฀assertion฀that฀is฀named฀in฀the฀organizers’฀statement฀ for฀the฀symposium—the฀“claim฀to฀be฀a฀universal฀discipline฀in฀spite฀of฀ its฀Western฀foundations”—but฀also฀the฀fact฀that฀we฀have฀been฀living฀ with฀ fundamental฀ contradictions฀ between฀ discourse฀ and฀ research฀ practice.2 After฀decades฀of฀such฀critique,฀we฀are฀prepared฀to฀envisage฀another,฀ more฀ radical฀ answer฀ to฀ the฀ question฀ of฀ agency฀ in฀ anthropology.฀ Although฀we฀may฀assume฀that฀to฀have฀been฀imperial฀is฀a฀predicament฀ of฀all฀“Western”฀science,฀our฀discipline฀undoubtedly฀acquired฀a฀special฀ role฀and฀status฀in฀this฀constellation.฀Historically฀and฀theoretically,฀our฀ subject฀ matter฀ (an฀ object฀ made฀ at฀ least฀ as฀ much฀ as฀ found)฀ has฀ been฀ peoples฀we฀represented฀as฀the฀Other.฀We฀may฀regret฀and฀lament฀the฀fact,฀ as฀I฀do,฀that฀this฀crucial฀insight฀is฀in฀constant฀danger฀of฀evaporating฀in฀ clouds฀of฀fashionable฀talk฀about฀“othering,”฀but฀this฀should฀not฀make฀

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us฀abandon฀a฀vision฀of฀agency฀that฀is฀in฀essence฀dialectical.฀Anthropology฀may฀be฀what฀anthropologists฀do฀(as฀someone฀from฀my฀teachers’฀ generation฀once฀defined฀the฀discipline),฀but฀anthropologists฀do฀what฀ they฀do฀by฀doing฀it฀with,฀and฀perhaps฀sometimes฀to,฀others.฀(Why฀this฀ is฀not฀invalidated฀by฀“native฀anthropology”฀or฀by฀an฀“anthropology฀ of฀the฀West”฀I฀will฀argue฀later.) Empirically,฀we฀base฀our฀claims฀to฀validity฀on฀fieldwork,฀on฀direct฀ interaction฀with฀those฀whom฀we฀study.฀Ethnographic฀authority฀may฀ be฀said฀to฀rest฀on฀“having฀been฀there,”฀that฀is,฀on฀our฀presence.฀But฀for฀ what฀would฀our฀presence฀count฀if฀it฀were฀not฀matched฀by฀the฀presence฀ of฀those฀whom฀we฀study?฀Neither฀presence,฀ours฀nor฀theirs,฀is฀a฀natural,฀ physical฀fact฀(nor฀is฀intersubjectivity฀as฀a฀condition฀of฀communicative฀ interaction);฀it฀must฀be฀achieved,฀and฀it฀is฀always฀precarious. More฀recently,฀fundamental฀changes฀have฀been฀taking฀place.฀Literacy฀ and฀modernity฀no฀longer฀function฀as฀demarcation฀lines฀between฀Us฀and฀ Them.฀Take฀the฀example฀of฀history,฀which฀has฀occupied฀me฀in฀much฀ of฀my฀work฀in฀the฀Congo.฀At฀one฀time,฀the฀project฀of฀African฀history฀ might฀have฀hinged฀on฀data฀and฀methods฀that฀were฀considered฀to฀follow฀ the฀rules฀and฀meet฀the฀standards฀of฀academic฀historiography.฀Now฀we฀ have฀a฀situation฀not฀only฀in฀which฀anthropology฀draws฀on฀history฀as฀ a฀complementary฀field฀(and฀vice฀versa)฀but฀in฀which฀both฀academic฀ disciplines฀face฀popular฀history฀as฀a฀competing฀practice฀(Fabian฀2001:฀ch.฀ 4).฀Similar฀situations฀exist฀in฀other฀fields,฀notably฀in฀the฀study฀of฀religion,฀ of฀the฀visual฀arts,฀theater,฀and฀dance,฀and฀of฀healing฀and฀medicine.฀All฀ these฀one-time฀objects฀of฀anthropology฀are฀being฀recognized฀as฀subjects,฀ as฀co-producers฀of฀knowledge.฀If฀demarcation฀lines฀between฀those฀who฀ know฀and฀those฀who฀are฀known฀crumble,฀what฀happens฀to฀the฀“who?”฀ that฀stands฀for฀agency?฀The฀very฀least฀that฀can฀be฀said฀is฀that฀any฀project฀ to฀practice฀anthropology฀must฀take฀into฀account฀these฀transformations฀ that฀ have฀ already฀ taken฀ place.฀ There฀ is฀ no฀ safe฀ academic฀ ground฀ to฀ which฀we฀can฀retreat฀to฀ponder฀our฀problems. Which฀adds฀another฀twist฀to฀the฀“who?”฀question.฀More฀than฀once฀ my฀own฀ethnographic฀work฀has฀led฀me฀to฀make฀assertions฀such฀as฀the฀ following:฀“Who฀are฀we฀to฀‘help’฀them?฀We฀need฀critique฀(exposure฀of฀ imperialist฀lies,฀of฀the฀workings฀of฀capitalism,฀of฀the฀misguided฀ideas฀ of฀scientism,฀and฀all฀the฀rest)฀to฀help฀ourselves.฀The฀catch฀is,฀of฀course,฀ that฀ ‘ourselves’฀ ought฀ to฀ be฀ them฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ us”฀ (Fabian฀ 1991:฀ 264).฀ This฀is฀why฀everything฀we฀practice฀concretely฀and฀specifically฀must฀be฀ conceived฀dialectically฀as฀universal.฀It฀is฀in฀this฀sense฀that฀we฀should฀ continue฀to฀uphold฀the฀ideal฀of฀anthropology฀as฀a฀universal฀science฀ of฀mankind,฀undeterred฀by฀the฀sad฀fate฀that฀an฀abstractly฀conceived฀

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universality฀may฀have฀had฀as฀an฀ideological฀construct฀in฀the฀course฀of฀ our฀discipline’s฀history.฀Such฀a฀view฀makes฀it฀legitimate฀to฀consider฀a฀ seemingly฀contradictory฀notion,฀that฀of฀“world฀anthropologies,”฀as฀an฀ anthropological฀project.

When? Another฀ assertion฀ I฀ would฀ like฀ to฀ make฀ is฀ that฀ the฀ farthest-reaching฀ transformation฀ to฀ affect฀ anthropology฀ in฀ recent฀ years฀ has฀ been฀ its฀ “temporalization.”฀ To฀ say฀ that฀ this฀ is฀ something฀ new฀ may฀ cause฀ disbelief,฀given฀that฀anthropology’s฀academic฀beginnings฀were฀defined฀ by฀the฀paradigms฀of฀evolutionism฀and฀diffusionism—natural฀history฀ and฀cultural฀history,฀respectively.฀But฀as฀I฀tried฀to฀show฀in฀Time฀and฀ the฀ Other฀ (Fabian฀ 2002a),฀ evolutionism฀ and฀ diffusionism,฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ their฀successors—let’s฀call฀them฀functionalism,฀structuralism,฀and฀culturalism—were฀suffused฀with฀spatial฀thought.฀Difference฀was฀conceived฀ of฀as฀distance,฀and฀identity฀as฀systemic฀and฀“boundary฀maintaining”฀ and฀ hence฀ somehow฀ territorial.฀ This฀ went฀ together฀ with฀ territorial฀ conceptions฀ of฀ our฀ practices฀ of฀ research฀ as฀ fieldwork,฀ and฀ it฀ was฀ all฀ mirrored฀in฀genres฀of฀writing฀such฀as฀the฀monograph. Among฀the฀outer,฀and฀obvious,฀signs฀of฀temporalization฀have฀been,฀ apart฀from฀the฀professionalization฀of฀the฀historiography฀of฀anthropology,฀ its฀ historization.3฀ This฀ was฀ initiated฀ and฀ accompanied฀ (after฀ timid฀ beginnings฀ with฀ “ethnohistory”)฀ by฀ cross-fertilization฀ between฀ the฀ disciplines฀of฀anthropology฀and฀history฀and฀by฀proposals,฀first฀inspired฀ by฀Marxist฀thought,฀to฀replace฀or฀complement฀our฀guiding฀concept฀of฀ culture฀with฀that฀of฀practice. Temporalization฀also฀occurred฀in฀the฀sense฀of฀anthropologists’฀devoting฀increased฀attention฀to฀time฀and฀timing,฀both฀in฀performances฀of฀ culture฀and฀in฀the฀study฀of฀such฀performances฀(a฀connection฀that,฀at฀ least฀in฀my฀mind,฀imposes฀itself฀by฀the฀need฀to฀establish฀coevalness,฀ co-temporaneity,฀in฀research).4฀Even฀approaches฀that฀use฀spatial฀terms฀ as฀ their฀ tags—James฀ Clifford’s฀ “routes”฀ (1997)฀ and฀ George฀ Marcus’s฀ “multi-sited฀ethnography”฀(1995)—are฀symptoms฀of฀temporalization฀in฀ that฀they฀advocate฀abandoning฀the฀single-site฀territory฀as฀the฀principal฀ or฀only฀target฀of฀ethnographic฀research. On฀the฀level฀of฀discourse,฀specifically฀regarding฀uses฀of฀theory฀and฀ the฀never-ending฀debate฀over฀the฀meaning฀of฀culture,฀temporalization฀ is฀adumbrated—though฀by฀no฀means฀worked฀out—in฀arguments฀that฀ we฀should฀ask฀the฀“when?”฀question,฀and฀not฀only฀the฀usual฀“what?”฀ and฀“where?”฀questions.฀Two฀statements฀will฀illustrate฀this.฀The฀first,฀

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regarding฀theory,฀I฀formulated฀in฀an฀introductory฀talk฀at฀a฀workshop฀ called฀“The฀Point฀of฀Theory,”฀as฀follows: The฀question฀of฀the฀point฀of฀theory฀is฀almost฀always฀heard฀as฀a฀question฀ of฀ the฀ place฀ of฀ theory฀.฀.฀.฀ In฀ hierarchical฀ conceptions฀ of฀ knowledge,฀ be฀ they฀interpretive฀or฀explanatory,฀hermeneutic฀or฀classificatory,฀pleading฀ for฀theory฀is฀a฀matter฀of฀claiming฀a฀place,฀usually฀above฀or฀upstream฀from฀ that฀ which฀ becomes฀ the฀ object฀ of฀ knowledge.฀ This฀ positional฀ quality฀ of฀ theorizing฀ is฀ too฀ obvious฀ to฀ have฀ escaped฀ critique.฀ Theory฀ is฀ then฀ denounced฀as฀a฀token฀of฀power฀relations,฀of฀elitist,฀Western,฀male,฀and฀ undoubtedly฀ other฀ forms฀ of฀ dominance.฀ But฀ if฀ theory฀ belongs฀ to฀ the฀ things฀we฀do฀in฀the฀real฀world,฀then฀we฀must฀take฀a฀further฀step:฀Theory฀ has฀no฀place฀unless฀it฀has฀time.฀In฀the฀real฀world฀theory฀happens฀.฀.฀. ฀ [We฀need]฀to฀reflect฀not฀so฀much฀on฀theory’s฀place฀as฀on฀its฀time,฀that฀ is,฀on฀moments฀in฀the฀production฀of฀knowledge฀leading฀from฀research฀ to฀ writing฀ in฀ which฀ we฀ must฀ take฀ positions;฀ moments฀ that฀ determine฀ how฀we฀get฀from฀one฀statement฀to฀another,฀from฀one฀story฀to฀another,฀ indeed,฀from฀one฀sentence฀to฀another.฀(Fabian฀2001:฀4–5,฀6–7)

The฀ second฀ statement฀ I฀ found฀ in฀ the฀ introduction฀ to฀ a฀ collective฀ essay฀titled฀“Conversation฀about฀Culture”฀in฀a฀recent฀issue฀of฀American฀ Anthropologist:฀“For฀decades฀now,฀culture฀has฀been฀a฀topic฀anthropologists฀ argue฀about:฀What฀it฀does฀or฀does฀not฀mean;฀if฀it฀should฀or฀should฀not฀ constitute฀a฀central฀concept฀of฀the฀discipline.฀This฀essay฀steps฀outside฀ these฀arguments฀to฀rephrase฀the฀issue฀and฀our฀approach฀to฀it.฀It฀explores฀ when฀it฀makes฀sense฀to฀use฀the฀cultural฀concept”฀(Borofski฀et฀al.฀2001:฀ 432). The฀coincidence฀is฀striking.฀As฀far฀as฀I฀can฀see,฀however,฀Borofski’s฀ co-authors,฀though฀united฀by฀an฀anti-essentialist฀view฀of฀culture,฀do฀not฀ explicitly฀address฀temporality฀in฀theorizing,฀except฀perhaps฀in฀suggesting฀ that฀the฀turn฀away฀from฀the฀what฀may฀have฀been฀inspired฀by฀American฀ pragmatist฀philosophy฀(2001:฀441–42).฀None฀of฀the฀contributors฀seems฀ to฀ remember฀ that฀ a฀ praxis-oriented฀ conception฀ of฀ culture฀ had฀ been฀ advocated฀decades฀earlier฀in฀a฀seminal฀but฀largely฀forgotten฀book฀by฀ Zygmunt฀Bauman฀(1973),฀who฀went฀even฀one฀step฀further฀when฀he฀ insisted฀on฀the฀rhetorical฀(I฀would฀add:฀and฀political)฀nature฀of฀debates฀ about฀culture. As฀I฀see฀it,฀one฀role฀that฀“world฀anthropologies”฀can฀play฀is฀to฀continue฀ challenging฀our฀discipline’s฀“central฀concept.”฀Their฀chances฀to฀make฀ a฀difference฀in฀such฀debates฀will฀increase฀as฀they฀keep฀asking฀“when?”฀ questions฀about฀performative฀and฀historical฀timing.฀Of฀course฀it฀will฀

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then฀have฀to฀be฀understood฀that฀our฀interest฀in฀world฀anthropologies฀ cannot฀be฀in฀their฀becoming฀a฀“state฀of฀affairs.”

Where? There฀was฀a฀time฀when฀the฀answer฀to฀the฀“where?”฀question,฀addressed฀ to฀anthropological฀practice,฀would฀have฀been:฀elsewhere.฀If฀you฀were฀ a฀ student฀ of฀ anthropology,฀ you฀ would฀ have฀ been฀ told฀ to฀ do฀ your฀ anthropology฀elsewhere;฀if฀you฀were฀a฀subject฀studied฀by฀anthropology,฀ the฀ knowledge฀ gained฀ from฀ you฀ would฀ have฀ been฀ stored฀ and฀ used฀ elsewhere.฀Much฀of฀this฀has฀changed;฀doing฀anthropology฀“here”฀has฀ become฀acceptable.฀An฀increasing฀portion฀of฀work฀in฀our฀discipline฀is฀ being฀done฀in฀contemporary฀societies฀by฀native฀researchers฀(see฀JacobsHuey฀2002).฀Of฀course฀the฀ambiguous฀connotations฀of฀“native”฀make฀ one฀suspect฀that฀being฀native฀to฀a฀Western฀society฀and฀being฀native฀to฀ societies฀that฀used฀to฀be฀the฀principal฀targets฀of฀anthropology฀are฀far฀ from฀the฀same฀thing.5฀This฀leads฀us฀to฀questions฀that฀touch฀upon฀the฀ core฀of฀concern฀with฀world฀anthropologies. Practicing฀anthropology฀can฀be฀a฀heroic฀task฀for,฀say,฀our฀underpaid฀ African฀colleagues,฀working฀at฀ill-equipped฀institutions,฀having฀to฀make฀ do฀with฀scarce฀funds,฀if฀any,฀for฀research฀or฀travel.฀In฀this฀and฀many฀ other฀examples฀of฀academic฀life฀away฀from฀the฀metropolitan฀centers฀we฀ may฀see฀inequality฀determined฀by฀location;฀this฀is฀certainly฀the฀way฀it฀is฀ often฀expressed.฀Yet฀it฀is฀politics฀and฀economics,฀not฀location,฀that฀cause฀ inequality.฀There฀is฀no฀such฀thing฀as฀a฀natural,฀geographical฀periphery.฀ And฀who฀would฀doubt฀that฀inequality,฀perhaps฀in฀different฀forms฀or฀ degrees,฀can—on฀the฀basis฀of฀gender,฀race,฀ethnicity,฀and฀so฀forth—be฀ inflicted฀and฀experienced฀in฀places฀that฀count฀as฀central?฀Of฀course,฀ pessimistically฀one฀may฀still฀fear฀that฀notions฀whose฀political฀natures฀ hide฀behind฀quasi-cosmological฀façades฀(for฀example,฀concepts฀such฀as฀ the฀world฀system฀and฀globalization)฀will฀continue฀to฀operate฀wherever฀ anthropology฀reproduces฀itself.฀Suppose฀oppression฀and฀exploitation฀ were฀to฀cease:฀would฀this฀necessarily฀make฀us฀stop฀thinking฀in฀terms฀ of฀centers฀and฀peripheries? Or฀take฀the฀generally฀accepted฀idea฀that฀posits฀the฀nation฀as฀a฀given฀ and฀ seeks฀ to฀ understand฀ anthropology฀ as฀ consisting฀ of฀ a฀ multitude฀ of฀“national฀traditions”฀or฀“styles.”฀The฀insight฀that,฀like฀every฀other฀ scientific฀practice,฀our฀discipline฀works฀under฀cultural฀conditions฀and฀ cultural฀constraints฀may฀count฀as฀a฀critical฀achievement.฀At฀the฀same฀ time,฀ it฀ carries฀ with฀ it฀ all฀ the฀ problems฀ of฀ a฀ culture฀ concept฀ whose฀ history฀(this฀is฀another฀insight฀formulated฀by฀Zygmunt฀Bauman)฀has฀

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been฀ fatefully฀ tied฀ to฀ the฀ nation-state฀ as฀ a฀ political฀ reality฀ and฀ as฀ a฀ provider฀of฀collective฀identity.฀Working฀toward฀“world฀anthropologies”฀ we฀will฀have฀to฀face฀these฀questions.฀It฀will฀inevitably฀be฀caught฀up฀in฀ a฀political฀struggle฀whose฀global฀prospects฀may฀give฀us฀cause฀for฀gloom฀ and฀pessimism. Matters฀look฀different฀with฀regard฀to฀nation฀and฀individual฀identity.฀ What฀I฀see,฀or฀like฀to฀believe,฀is฀that฀anthropology฀has฀succeeded฀in฀ making฀ many฀ of฀ its฀ practitioners฀ into฀ transnationals,฀ that฀ is,฀ into฀ scientists฀whose฀frame฀of฀mind฀is฀no฀longer฀set฀by฀an฀unquestioned฀ national฀identity.฀Of฀course฀being฀transnational฀is฀an฀individual฀achievement฀ inasmuch฀ as฀ it฀ goes฀ together฀ with฀ such฀ things฀ as฀ accidents฀ of฀ biography,฀multilingual฀and฀multicultural฀competences,฀varied฀work฀ experiences,฀and฀networks฀of฀close฀professional฀cooperation฀and฀lasting฀ friendship.฀ Still,฀ individual฀ transnationalism฀ that฀ reaches฀ a฀ “critical฀ mass”฀ is฀ bound฀ to฀ have฀ a฀ collective฀ impact,฀ and฀ that฀ would฀ be฀ the฀ “when?”฀of฀its฀significance฀for฀world฀anthropologies.6 The฀idea฀of฀a฀transnational฀subject฀(or฀agent)฀harks฀back฀to฀the฀“who?”฀ question.฀It฀could฀also฀be฀relevant฀to฀the฀“where?”฀of฀anthropology.฀It฀ opens฀up฀the฀prospect฀of฀alternatives฀to฀existing฀professional฀groupings฀ and฀ associations.฀ We฀ could฀ envisage,฀ or฀ dream฀ of,฀ anthropological฀ scenes,฀shifting฀but฀vital฀consociations฀resembling฀artistic฀or฀literary฀ scenes฀that฀spawn฀creativity.฀We฀could฀begin฀to฀see฀ourselves฀practicing฀ anthropology฀not฀so฀much฀in฀“fields”฀or฀professional฀territories฀as฀in฀ arenas฀of฀agonistic฀intellectual฀work฀and฀play.฀Arena,฀at฀first฀glance฀a฀ concept฀of฀space,฀is฀always฀also฀a฀concept฀of฀time:฀of฀events฀that฀take฀ place,฀of฀moments฀of฀intensity฀not฀easily฀reached฀outside฀an฀arena.฀You฀ may฀point฀out฀that฀arenas฀already฀exist฀in฀the฀form฀of฀symposia฀such฀ as฀the฀one฀that฀prompted฀this฀book,฀and฀we฀all฀know฀how฀important฀ professional฀meetings฀are฀for฀experiencing฀our฀discipline฀as฀real฀and฀ for฀keeping฀it฀alive.฀As฀something฀that฀deserves฀to฀be฀promoted,฀scenes฀ and฀arenas฀should฀open฀a฀perspective฀for฀world฀anthropologies.฀Should฀ world฀anthropologies฀perhaps฀be฀envisioned฀as฀events฀and฀rallies฀more฀ than฀as฀institutions฀or฀organizations?7 Finally,฀if฀a฀decade฀or฀two฀ago฀discussions฀of฀anthropology’s฀space฀ would฀have฀concerned฀themselves฀with฀territories,฀fields,฀and฀centerperiphery฀relations,฀today฀we฀must฀come฀to฀grips฀with฀the฀virtual฀space฀ that฀ has฀ been฀ opened฀ up฀ by฀ the฀ internet.฀ As฀ yet,฀ scholarly฀ attitudes฀ toward฀ the฀ new฀ medium฀ remain฀ ambiguous.฀ The฀ internet฀ has฀ been฀ celebrated฀ as฀ the฀ dawn฀ of฀ an฀ age฀ when฀ information฀ and฀ knowledge฀ will฀ be฀ democratized;฀ it฀ has฀ been฀ condemned฀ as฀ the฀ end฀ of฀ literate฀ intellectual฀ life฀ as฀ we฀ have฀ known฀ it฀ through฀ the฀ ages.฀ But฀ here฀ as฀

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elsewhere฀the฀proof฀is฀in฀the฀pie.฀What฀can฀we฀do฀with฀the฀internet?฀My฀ own฀practical฀experience—and฀many฀others฀will฀probably฀recognize฀this฀ as฀their฀story,฀too—began฀with฀word-processing,฀a฀great฀advancement฀for฀ someone฀who฀had฀never฀been฀able฀to฀think฀at฀a฀typewriter.฀It฀proceeded฀ to฀email,฀more฀by฀the฀force฀of฀circumstances฀than฀by฀choice;฀regular฀mail฀ had฀suddenly฀dwindled฀to฀publishers’฀catalogues฀and฀administrative฀ ephemera฀from฀my฀university.฀Then฀I฀graduated฀to฀search฀engines฀and฀ online฀library฀catalogues฀(I฀still฀spend฀very฀little฀time฀surfing฀and฀none฀ at฀all฀chatting).฀It฀was฀not฀until฀a฀colleague฀and฀I฀claimed฀a฀place฀in฀ virtual฀space—a฀website—that฀I฀began฀to฀see฀some฀of฀the฀ways฀in฀which฀ the฀internet฀bears฀on฀the฀“where?”฀of฀anthropology,฀practically฀as฀well฀ as฀theoretically. Certain฀practical฀consequences฀of฀the฀internet฀are฀obvious;฀we฀need฀ only฀consider฀how฀making฀contacts฀and฀circulating฀information฀worked฀ for฀our฀“World฀Anthropologies”฀conference.฀We฀can฀be฀there฀for฀each฀ other฀wherever฀we฀are฀at฀the฀moment.฀(This,฀though,฀should฀not฀make฀ us฀ignore฀some฀less฀obvious฀consequences.฀Who฀is฀excluded,฀or฀at฀least฀ disadvantaged,฀without฀access฀to฀the฀internet?฀And฀are฀speed฀and฀facility฀ of฀ communication฀ unequivocally฀ positive฀ for฀ intellectual฀ work฀ that฀ takes฀time?) Less฀obvious฀but฀more฀exciting฀are฀possibilities฀offered฀by฀the฀internet฀ that฀ are฀ bound฀ to฀ affect,฀ for฀ instance,฀ our฀ ethnographic฀ practices.฀ I฀ am฀not฀referring฀to฀the฀data฀collection฀and฀storage฀made฀possible฀by฀ the฀use฀of฀a฀laptop฀in฀the฀field฀or฀the฀application฀of฀programs฀for฀data฀ processing฀and฀analysis฀at฀home,฀none฀of฀which฀is฀necessarily฀dependent฀ on฀the฀internet.฀What฀I฀would฀like฀briefly฀to฀report฀on฀is฀a฀discovery฀I฀ made฀in฀the฀course฀of฀setting฀up฀a฀virtual฀archive฀of฀texts฀on฀a฀website฀ devoted฀to฀“Language฀and฀Popular฀Culture”฀(www2.fmg.uva.nl/lpca),฀a฀ project฀under฀construction฀and฀still฀embryonic.฀The฀project฀has฀special฀ significance฀for฀language-฀and฀text-centered฀anthropology,฀but฀I฀believe฀ it฀is฀more฀generally฀relevant,฀given฀that฀ethnography,฀irrespective฀of฀the฀ approach฀taken,฀is฀mediated฀by฀textual฀material.฀My฀discovery฀is฀that฀a฀ virtual฀archive฀creates฀a฀new฀and฀different฀kind฀of฀presence฀of฀texts—the฀ “where?”฀question฀again—that฀changes฀conditions฀for฀a฀practice฀we฀are฀ all฀involved฀in:฀ethnographic฀writing฀and฀publishing.฀Reflecting฀on฀such฀ changed฀conditions฀has฀led฀me฀to฀predict฀that฀an-age฀old฀genre,฀the฀ commentary,฀is฀likely฀to฀emerge฀in฀a฀new฀form฀(see฀Fabian฀2002b). The฀presence฀of฀ethnographic฀texts฀on฀the฀internet฀is฀of฀course฀not฀ limited฀to฀“presence฀for฀us”฀(the฀virtual฀archive฀is฀in฀principle฀accessible฀ to฀anyone);฀many฀of฀those฀whom฀we฀study฀have฀claimed฀their฀place฀on฀ the฀internet฀in฀websites฀and฀chat฀groups฀and฀are฀now฀producing฀corpora฀

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of฀texts,฀and฀we฀begin฀to฀see฀dissertations฀based฀on฀ethnographic฀data฀of฀ this฀sort฀(for฀instance,฀Franklin฀2001).฀Anthropology’s฀place฀(or฀places)฀ in฀virtual฀space฀is฀far฀from฀well฀understood฀(especially฀if฀we฀consider฀ that,฀besides฀texts,฀virtual฀archives฀can฀also฀accommodate฀audio฀and฀ video฀recordings),฀and฀it฀is฀certain฀that฀it฀will฀need฀our฀constant฀critical฀ attention.฀But฀it฀can฀hardly฀be฀doubted฀that฀this฀new฀kind฀of฀“where?”฀ will฀have฀to฀be฀considered฀in฀a฀project฀of฀world฀anthropologies.

What? As฀questions฀accumulate,฀it฀becomes฀increasingly฀difficult฀to฀keep฀them฀ separate.฀If฀our฀observations฀on฀changes฀in฀anthropology฀that฀appear฀ when฀we฀reflect฀on฀“who?”฀“when?”฀and฀“where?”฀have฀any฀merit,฀and฀ if฀the฀questions฀are฀indeed฀connected฀such฀that฀many฀of฀the฀straight฀ answers฀ we฀ have฀ been฀ accustomed฀ to฀ are฀ no฀ longer฀ valid,฀ then฀ we฀ should฀be฀prepared฀for฀the฀unexpected฀when฀we฀ask฀for฀the฀“what?”฀ of฀anthropology. It฀has฀become฀difficult฀to฀put฀oneself฀back฀into฀the฀frame฀of฀mind฀of฀ our฀predecessors,฀who฀were฀certain฀that฀anthropology฀had฀an฀object฀that฀ it฀had฀found฀rather฀than฀made:฀primitive฀(later฀traditional,฀premodern,฀ developing)฀society/culture.฀That฀societies฀labeled฀primitive฀were฀also฀ the฀targets฀of฀imperialist฀expansion฀made฀anthropological฀knowledge฀ desirable฀at฀first฀and฀suspect฀later,฀when฀the฀same฀processes฀that฀had฀ been฀set฀in฀motion฀to฀colonize฀primitive฀peoples฀resulted฀in฀the฀end฀of฀ direct฀colonization.฀Conditions฀for฀fieldwork฀changed,฀and฀so฀did฀the฀ object,฀or฀objects,฀of฀research.฀The฀“when?”฀began฀to฀play฀a฀decisive฀role฀ in฀determining฀the฀“what?”฀when฀recognition฀of฀the฀co-temporaneity฀of฀ all฀societies฀or฀cultures฀dawned฀on฀us฀(for฀epistemological฀reasons)฀or฀was฀ forced฀on฀us฀(by฀technological฀and฀political฀developments).฀I฀would฀even฀ maintain฀that฀recognition฀of฀co-temporaneity,฀gained฀as฀anthropology฀ was฀decolonized,฀enabled฀our฀discipline฀to฀turn฀its฀attention฀to฀modern฀ society:฀“Studying฀our฀own฀societies”฀is฀the฀telling฀phrase฀describing฀ this฀turn.฀“Telling”฀because,฀though฀it฀may฀be฀Eurocentric฀most฀of฀the฀ time,฀it฀could฀also฀be฀a฀sign฀of฀a฀thoroughly฀changed฀understanding฀of฀ the฀“who?”฀of฀anthropology฀(remember฀what฀I฀said฀earlier฀about฀“us฀ being฀them”). Radical฀as฀some฀of฀these฀transformations฀may฀have฀been,฀they฀seem฀ to฀have฀left฀the฀agenda฀of฀traditional฀ethnographic฀subjects฀(another฀ aspect฀of฀the฀“what?”)฀untouched,฀notwithstanding฀important฀additions฀ such฀as฀gender,฀literacy,฀material฀culture,฀the฀media,฀and฀ecology.฀Myths฀ and฀cosmologies,฀religion฀and฀ritual,฀magic฀and฀witchcraft,฀chiefship฀

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and฀clans,฀kinship฀and฀alliances,฀gifts฀and฀exchange—all฀these฀persist฀or฀ are฀rediscovered฀as฀unexpected฀practices฀of฀modernity.฀Does฀that฀mean฀ that฀anthropology฀is฀unreformed฀in฀maintaining฀a฀metropolitan฀gaze,฀ an฀Enlightenment฀perspective฀inspired฀by฀what฀G.฀Gusdorf฀called฀the฀ “myth-history฀of฀reason?” Reflecting฀on฀my฀own฀work,฀which฀has฀included฀studies฀of฀language,฀ religion,฀work,฀visual฀and฀performing฀arts,฀and฀collective฀memory,฀I฀sense฀ a฀shift฀that฀may฀be฀of฀interest฀in฀a฀debate฀over฀world฀anthropologies.฀Our฀ discipline,฀which฀started฀out฀as฀the฀study฀of฀diversity฀and฀similarities฀of฀ human฀life฀(hence฀the฀emphasis฀on฀custom,฀tradition,฀structures,฀and฀ systems),฀has฀become฀a฀science฀of฀forms฀of฀human฀survival.฀This฀is฀why฀ practice฀seems฀more฀appropriate฀as฀a฀key฀concept฀than฀culture;฀why฀ concepts฀such฀as฀strategies฀and฀projects฀seem฀to฀fit฀the฀actions฀we฀observe฀ better฀than฀habits฀and฀schemes;฀why฀resistance฀often฀describes฀collective฀ action฀better฀than฀conformity;฀why฀production฀and฀innovation฀interest฀ us฀more฀than฀reproduction฀and฀tradition,฀politics฀more฀than฀aesthetics,฀ hybridity฀more฀than฀purity฀or฀authenticity,฀interaction฀spheres฀more฀ than฀territories฀and฀boundaries.฀I฀do฀not฀want฀this฀to฀be฀misunderstood.฀ Hammering฀on฀one฀side฀in฀these฀oppositions฀can฀be฀as฀much฀a฀bore฀ as฀hammering฀on฀the฀other.฀Culture,฀tradition,฀identity,฀authenticity,฀ and฀so฀forth฀are฀bound฀to฀remain฀perennial฀subjects฀of฀inquiry,฀if฀only฀ because฀we฀need฀them฀to฀maintain฀a฀dialectic฀tension฀without฀which฀ anthropological฀inquiry฀into฀the฀most฀timely฀subjects฀would฀relapse฀ into฀positivist฀routine. Nor฀is฀all฀this฀only฀gratuitous฀juggling฀with฀possible฀oppositions.฀There฀ is฀a฀time฀(a฀“when?”)฀that,฀to฀return฀to฀an฀example฀from฀my฀own฀work,฀ may฀ require฀ arguing฀ for฀ a฀ concept฀ of฀ popular฀ culture฀ against฀ culture฀ tout฀court,฀because฀the฀former฀makes฀us฀discover฀cultural฀creations฀to฀ which฀the฀latter฀left฀us฀blind฀(Fabian฀1998).฀After฀all,฀it฀is฀indisputable฀ that,฀ as฀ ethnographers฀ of฀ African฀ cultures,฀ we฀ once฀ paid฀ little฀ or฀ no฀ attention฀ to฀ contemporary฀ African฀ music,฀ theater,฀ or฀ painting,฀ and฀ that฀we฀do฀so฀now.฀I฀am฀sure฀that฀most฀readers฀could฀come฀up฀with฀ other฀examples. World฀ anthropologies,฀ as฀ they฀ were฀ envisaged฀ at฀ our฀ symposium,฀ seem฀to฀be฀predestined฀for฀the฀study฀of฀human฀life฀as฀survival.฀Social฀ and฀political฀commitment฀almost฀dictate฀this฀change฀in฀perspective.฀ Commitment฀is฀to฀the฀individual฀anthropologist’s฀credit฀and฀may฀have฀ effects,฀in฀his฀or฀her฀sphere฀of฀action,฀on฀the฀way฀anthropology฀is฀done.฀ Still,฀we฀should฀at฀the฀same฀time฀have฀in฀mind฀changes฀that฀may฀be฀ farther฀ reaching฀ because,฀ and฀ to฀ the฀ extent฀ that,฀ they฀ redefine฀ the฀ “what?”฀of฀anthropology.

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How? To฀introduce฀my฀last฀(well,฀next-to-last)฀question,฀it฀is฀perhaps฀useful฀to฀ remember฀that,฀historically,฀the฀“how?”฀question฀was฀among฀the฀first฀ to฀be฀posed.฀This฀happened฀at฀the฀beginning฀of฀a฀period฀of฀reflection฀ in฀our฀discipline฀that฀eventually฀brought฀us฀together฀to฀think฀about฀ world฀anthropologies.฀A฀radical฀critique฀of฀the฀ethics฀and฀politics฀of฀ anthropology฀may฀have฀been฀the฀most฀immediate฀and฀widely฀shared฀ response฀to฀its฀postcolonial฀predicament.฀The฀most฀lasting฀achievement,฀ however,฀has฀been฀the฀insight฀that฀we฀could฀not฀hope฀for฀changes฀in฀ the฀“what?”฀unless฀we฀considered฀and฀changed฀established฀views฀of฀the฀ “how?”฀of฀anthropological฀practice. In฀my฀view,฀this฀was฀the฀moment฀when฀our฀discipline฀stopped฀taking฀ free฀rides฀on฀theories฀and฀methods฀developed฀in฀other฀fields฀(or฀just฀ clinging฀to฀confused฀ideas฀such฀as฀that฀of฀participant฀observation฀as฀ our฀distinctive฀“method”).฀We฀became฀serious฀about฀epistemology,฀that฀ is,฀about฀the฀specific฀conditions฀of฀producing฀anthropological฀knowledge฀based฀on฀empirical฀work฀that฀we฀call,฀not฀quite฀appropriately,฀ ethnography.฀This฀is฀not฀the฀place฀to฀recount฀in฀any฀detail฀what฀has฀ happened฀in฀this฀respect฀since฀the฀late฀1960s.฀Let฀me฀just฀mention฀a฀ point฀of฀departure฀that฀was฀crucial฀and฀then฀briefly฀outline฀a฀series฀of฀ steps฀or฀turns฀that฀led฀to฀the฀present฀state฀as฀I฀see฀it. The฀beginning฀I฀spoke฀of฀came฀when฀we฀realized฀that฀in฀the฀kind฀of฀ empirical฀work฀we฀had฀come฀to฀see฀as฀distinctive฀of,฀and฀fundamental฀to,฀ our฀discipline—field฀research—we฀never฀simply฀collected฀information.฀ Ethnography฀is฀a฀product฀of฀interaction,฀with฀speaking฀as฀its฀major,฀ though฀not฀only,฀medium;฀it฀is฀dialogical.฀What฀we฀take฀away฀from฀ research฀as฀“data”฀is฀only฀sometimes฀found;฀most฀often฀it฀is฀made.฀As฀ documents฀of฀communicative฀events,฀our฀material฀is฀never฀simply฀grist฀ for฀analytical฀mills.฀Documents฀must฀be฀interpreted,฀placed฀in฀context,฀ and฀ weighed฀ according฀ to฀ the฀ circumstances฀ and฀ conditions฀ under฀ which฀they฀were฀produced. This฀must฀suffice฀as฀a฀brief฀reminder฀of฀the฀moment฀when฀we฀took฀our฀ distance฀from฀positivism฀and฀scientism.฀Other฀steps฀followed.฀Emphasis฀ on฀communication฀and฀language-in-action฀made฀us฀realize฀how฀much฀ of฀cultural฀knowledge฀and฀hence฀of฀ethnography฀is฀performative;฀what฀ we฀ learn฀ often฀ does฀ not฀ come฀ as฀ responses฀ to฀ our฀ questions฀ but฀ is฀ enacted฀in,฀and฀mediated฀by,฀events฀that฀we฀may฀trigger฀but฀cannot฀ really฀ control฀ (every฀ simple฀ interview฀ is฀ such฀ a฀ performative฀ event).฀ Similarly,฀concern฀with฀interpretation฀and฀hermeneutics฀made฀us฀aware฀ of฀positivist฀naïveté฀regarding฀the฀relations฀between฀research฀and฀writing฀

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in฀the฀production฀of฀ethnographic฀knowledge.฀At฀its฀best,฀this฀“literary฀ turn”฀made฀us฀more฀scientific฀because฀it฀sharpened฀our฀awareness฀of฀ the฀ epistemological฀ significance฀ of฀ presentation฀ and฀ representation.฀ In฀ sum,฀ paying฀ attention฀ to฀ the฀ “how?”฀ question฀ helped฀ us฀ to฀ see฀ more฀clearly฀than฀ever฀before฀the฀“when?”฀of฀our฀work—its฀historical฀ contingency—as฀well฀as฀the฀“who?”—that฀is,฀the฀roles฀authority฀and฀ power฀play฀when฀we฀pronounce฀our฀discourse฀about฀those฀whom฀we฀ study. The฀epistemological฀revolution฀I฀just฀sketched฀in฀its฀barest฀outlines฀ has฀at฀least฀one฀important฀practical฀consequence฀for฀the฀project฀of฀world฀ anthropologies.฀Though฀this฀may฀meet฀with฀reluctance฀and฀opposition฀ (see฀the฀sustained฀debate฀over฀the฀“scientific”฀nature฀of฀anthropology฀in฀ Anthropology฀News,฀for฀instance),฀we฀must฀admit฀now฀that฀the฀“how?”฀of฀ our฀discipline฀is฀no฀longer฀guaranteed฀by฀a฀unified฀“scientific฀method.”฀ Or,฀if฀there฀is฀a฀method,฀it฀is฀no฀longer฀conceivable฀as฀ahistorical฀or฀ apolitical.฀And฀that฀means฀that฀hegemonic,฀metropolitan฀interests฀can฀ no฀longer฀wield฀an฀instrument฀that฀was฀all฀the฀more฀insidious฀because฀it฀ could฀be฀paraded฀as฀neutral฀and฀objective.฀The฀epistemological฀revolution฀ has฀given฀us฀spaces฀of฀freedom฀in฀which฀we฀can฀move฀innovatively,฀ productively,฀and฀even฀playfully฀(something,฀however,฀that฀we฀should฀ not฀confuse฀with฀the฀pseudo-liberal฀arbitrariness฀that฀goes฀under฀the฀ name฀of฀postmodernism).

So? The฀conveners฀of฀our฀symposium฀ended฀their฀programmatic฀statement฀ with฀half฀a฀dozen฀questions฀to฀which฀they฀asked฀participants฀to฀reply.฀I฀ responded฀to฀their฀questions฀with฀mine฀because฀I฀had฀no฀ready฀answers฀ to฀ theirs.฀ To฀ say฀ something฀ nontrivial฀ about฀ world฀ anthropologies,฀ I฀ first฀ needed฀ to฀ recall฀ and฀ rehearse฀ what฀ I฀ know฀ about,฀ and฀ how฀ I฀ experience,฀anthropology.฀I฀now฀would฀like฀to฀add฀a฀few฀autobiographical฀ remarks. After฀having฀been฀socialized฀in฀Austro-German฀ethnology,฀I฀became฀ a฀ survivor฀ of฀ North฀ American฀ four-field฀ anthropological฀ training฀ in฀ the฀1960s.฀Then฀followed฀more฀than฀a฀decade฀divided,฀albeit฀unevenly,฀ between฀teaching฀in฀decidedly฀metropolitan฀institutions฀in฀the฀United฀ States฀and฀in฀a฀department฀of฀the฀National฀University฀of฀Zaire,฀which฀ was฀then฀in฀full฀sway฀of฀decolonization.฀When,฀after฀another฀five฀years฀ at฀an฀elite฀college฀in฀the฀United฀States,฀I฀moved฀to฀the฀Netherlands,฀I฀ encountered฀for฀the฀first฀time฀a฀situation฀in฀which฀Marxism฀was฀the฀ orthodoxy.฀To฀me฀this฀was฀so฀unusual฀that,฀initially,฀I฀failed฀to฀recognize฀

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that฀it฀was฀the฀case.฀This฀was฀good฀because฀it฀allowed฀me฀to฀stay฀aloof฀ of฀ephemeral฀doctrinal฀disputes.฀Aloofness฀continued฀to฀be฀the฀most฀ practical฀attitude฀throughout฀my฀years฀in฀the฀Netherlands.฀Neither฀my฀ American฀training฀nor฀my฀German฀citizenship฀endeared฀me฀to฀those฀of฀ my฀colleagues฀who฀searched฀for,฀or฀had฀found,฀their฀intellectual฀home฀in฀ a฀distinctly฀national฀anthropology฀(understandably฀so;฀after฀all,฀Dutch฀ anthropologists,฀ though฀ not฀ under฀ that฀ label,฀ had฀ been฀ among฀ the฀ avant-garde฀of฀our฀discipline฀when฀it฀still฀had฀close฀links฀to฀the฀colonial฀ enterprise).฀But฀I฀should฀also฀say฀that฀I฀never฀encountered฀the฀slightest฀ obstacle฀against฀orienting฀my฀work฀internationally—though฀I฀do฀not฀ know฀whether฀that฀was฀due฀to฀tolerance฀or฀to฀indifference. What฀made฀me฀embark฀on฀this฀retrospective฀of฀practicing฀my฀profession฀ in฀ the฀ center,฀ at฀ the฀ periphery,฀ and฀ (as฀ I฀ remember฀ putting฀ it)฀ in฀ a฀ center฀ of฀ the฀ periphery฀ was฀ to฀ prepare฀ an฀ answer฀ to฀ one฀ of฀ the฀organizers’฀questions:฀No,฀I฀do฀not฀think฀the฀concept฀of฀a฀matrix฀ adequately฀describes฀the฀current฀state฀of฀world฀anthropology.฀Not฀only฀is฀ it฀inadequate,฀it฀is฀inappropriate.฀National฀and฀international,฀peripheral,฀ central,฀and฀intermediate฀practices฀of฀anthropology฀do฀not฀relate฀to฀ each฀other฀taxonomically฀(which฀the฀concept฀of฀a฀matrix฀implies฀to฀ me);฀they฀do฀not฀make฀up,฀nor฀do฀they฀fit฀into,฀a฀system฀or฀paradigm.฀ Anthropological฀ practices฀ happen฀ in฀ events฀ and฀ movements.฀ They฀ acquire฀their฀collective฀identity฀not฀by฀subscribing฀to฀a฀single฀discourse฀ but฀by฀having฀to฀face฀a฀common฀predicament:฀they฀must฀let฀themselves฀ be฀constituted฀by฀facing฀a฀world฀that฀is฀non-anthropology. This฀is฀not฀the฀same฀as฀what฀we฀mean฀when฀we฀discuss฀anthropology’s฀ “object(s).”฀I฀deeply฀believe฀that฀a฀realistic฀view฀of฀our฀discipline฀must฀ acknowledge฀that฀our฀kind฀of฀science฀is฀practiced฀in฀the฀presence฀of฀ other฀kinds฀of฀knowledge฀production.฀These฀other฀kinds฀of฀knowledge฀ production฀are฀not฀limited฀to฀other฀academic฀disciplines;฀they฀include฀ the฀discursive,฀performative,฀aesthetic,฀and฀political฀practices฀of฀those฀ whom฀we฀study.฀What฀enables฀us฀to฀communicate฀with฀and฀represent฀ other฀practices฀is฀not฀(only)฀our฀command฀of฀contents,฀which฀count฀as฀ data,฀or฀our฀findings,฀which฀count฀as฀the฀results฀of฀research;฀it฀is฀our฀ability฀ to฀converse฀as฀knowers.฀And฀that฀conversation฀includes฀confronting฀ each฀other,฀arguing฀with฀each฀other,฀negotiating฀agreements,฀and฀stating฀ disagreements,฀as฀well฀as฀conceiving฀common฀projects. Let฀me,฀before฀I฀end,฀attempt฀to฀clarify฀the฀idea฀of฀world฀anthropologies฀ conceptually.฀Like฀the฀symposium฀conveners,฀I฀did฀not฀start฀out฀with฀a฀ definition;฀I฀joined฀an฀ongoing฀discussion.฀Such฀a฀break฀with฀rules฀of฀ argumentation฀(“define฀your฀concepts฀before฀you฀use฀them”)฀may฀raise฀ objections฀or฀at฀least฀give฀cause฀for฀concern.฀Of฀course,฀one฀may฀point฀

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out฀that฀such฀“classical฀rules”฀have฀never฀ruled฀natural฀conversation,฀nor฀ have฀they฀been฀adhered฀to฀in฀post-Kantian฀philosophy.฀Still,฀even฀when฀ attempting฀a฀generally฀accepted฀definition฀of฀a฀concept฀is฀a฀hopeless฀task฀ (the฀debate฀over฀“culture”฀in฀our฀own฀discipline฀offers฀a฀vivid฀example),฀ it฀makes฀sense฀to฀strive฀for฀a฀common฀understanding฀of฀a฀concept฀in฀a฀ given฀debate.฀Here฀is฀what฀I฀suggest. We฀should฀take฀“world฀anthropologies”฀as฀a฀floating฀concept,฀one฀that฀ cannot฀be฀anchored฀in฀a฀system;฀if฀it฀could,฀it฀would฀lose฀its฀interest฀and฀ usefulness.฀Why฀this฀is฀so฀and฀must฀be฀so฀has฀to฀do฀with฀the฀fact฀that฀the฀ only฀conceivable฀function฀of฀a฀concept฀such฀as฀“world฀anthropologies”฀ is฀ to฀ conceptualize฀ practices.฀ As฀ practices,฀ world฀ anthropologies฀ are฀ themselves฀ floating.฀ Everything฀ I฀ believe฀ to฀ have฀ understood฀ about฀ them฀suggests฀that฀we฀use฀the฀concept฀in฀order฀to฀formulate฀a฀vision฀ of฀anthropology฀that฀makes฀place—be฀it฀geographical฀or฀geopolitical฀ location,฀rank฀in฀a฀hierarchy,฀position฀in฀theoretical฀and฀methodological฀ schools,฀occupancy฀of฀fields฀and฀territories—if฀not฀irrelevant฀then฀at฀ least฀questionable,฀and฀hence฀a฀target฀for฀resistance฀as฀well฀as฀a฀source฀ of฀innovation. If฀you฀are฀still฀disturbed฀by฀the฀notion฀of฀a฀floating฀concept—one฀ could฀point฀out฀that฀ill-defined฀concepts฀are฀the฀tools฀of฀demagogues— let฀me฀try฀one฀last฀tack.฀First,฀floating฀is฀not฀the฀same฀as฀ill-defined;฀it฀ is฀in฀contrast฀to฀something฀like฀fixed฀or฀grounded.฀Of฀course฀we฀have฀ the฀responsibility฀to฀be฀as฀clear฀as฀possible฀about฀what฀we฀mean฀when฀ we฀speak฀of฀“world฀anthropologies,”฀but฀clarity฀should฀not฀be฀sought฀ by฀recognizing฀a฀single฀instance฀(such฀as฀“science”)฀that฀might฀relieve฀ us฀of฀the฀burden฀of฀critical฀reflection฀by฀giving฀us฀context-฀and฀powerfree฀rules.฀At฀any฀rate,฀it฀is฀always฀legitimate฀to฀adopt฀strategies฀that฀ make฀ virtues฀ out฀ of฀ vices;฀ perhaps฀ the฀ term฀ floating฀ has฀ undesirable฀ connotations฀ and฀ we฀ should฀ adopt฀ a฀ less฀ provocative฀ label,฀ such฀ as฀ “mobile.”฀ Perhaps—as฀ long฀ as฀ this฀ does฀ not฀ make฀ us฀ lose฀ sight฀ of฀ our฀aim,฀which฀is฀to฀understand฀and฀promote฀practices฀that฀contest฀ hegemonic฀claims฀based฀on฀power฀rather฀than฀authority฀(claims฀that฀ always฀confuse฀their฀world฀with฀the฀world). That฀“planetary”฀anthropology฀should฀be฀realized฀through฀anthropologies฀whose฀relations฀with฀each฀other฀are฀neither฀hierarchical฀nor฀ hegemonic฀could฀appear฀a฀utopian฀project,฀something฀that฀by฀definition฀ cannot฀be฀reached.฀“World฀anthropologies”฀describes฀a฀state฀that฀already฀ exists฀on฀some฀levels฀of฀discourse฀and฀practice.฀That฀it฀does฀not—and฀ cannot—encompass฀other฀levels฀as฀long฀as฀power,฀prestige,฀and฀control฀ of฀funds฀are฀the฀predominant฀motives฀for฀making฀alliances฀should฀not฀ discourage฀us.฀I฀remain฀optimistic฀because฀I฀have฀seen฀that฀our฀discipline฀

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has฀been฀open฀(or,฀if฀you฀prefer,฀vulnerable)฀to฀critique฀and฀because,฀ so฀far,฀I฀have฀reasons฀to฀believe฀that฀critical฀anthropology฀has฀proved฀ that฀it฀can฀be฀productive.

Notes 1.฀ What฀ is฀ the฀ role฀ of฀ existing฀ national฀ and฀ supranational฀ associations฀ in฀ all฀ this?฀ I฀ decided฀ this฀ question฀ should฀ be฀ added฀ to฀ the฀ list฀ after฀ I฀ had฀ the฀ opportunity฀ to฀ observe฀ a฀ recent฀ meeting฀ of฀ presidents฀ of฀ national฀ and฀ international฀ anthropological฀ associations฀ (sponsored฀ by฀ the฀ Wenner-Gren฀ Foundation)฀in฀Recife,฀Brazil,฀in฀June฀2004. 2.฀ I฀tried฀to฀demonstrate฀this฀point฀in฀Time฀and฀the฀Other฀(Fabian฀2002a). 3.฀ In฀January฀1986฀a฀Wenner-Gren฀conference฀met฀in฀Fez,฀Morocco,฀to฀consider฀what฀historization฀would฀do฀to฀the฀concept฀of฀symbol.฀The฀results฀were฀ edited฀and฀introduced฀by฀Emiko฀Ohnuki-Tierney฀(1990),฀who฀also฀took฀stock฀ of฀ the฀ historization฀ of฀ the฀ culture฀ concept฀ (2001).฀ This฀ is฀ not฀ the฀ place฀ to฀ argue฀ about฀ why฀ temporalization฀ and฀ historization฀ are฀ not฀ the฀ same฀ thing,฀ except฀to฀say฀that฀the฀former฀is,฀in฀my฀view,฀more฀directly฀relevant฀to฀the฀topic฀ we฀discussed฀at฀the฀“World฀Anthropologies”฀symposium. 4.฀ For฀an฀example฀of฀how฀this฀increased฀attention฀to฀time฀and฀timing฀has฀ also฀ reached฀ textbooks฀ in฀ anthropologically฀ oriented฀ linguistics,฀ see฀ Hanks฀ 1996. 5.฀ Being฀a฀native฀of฀“Western฀society”฀exemplifies฀a฀predicament฀that฀may฀ be฀shared,฀though฀not฀in฀every฀respect,฀by฀others฀(Japanese,฀Chinese,฀Indians,฀ Latin฀Americans—the฀list฀should฀be฀at฀least฀as฀long฀as฀there฀were฀nationalities฀ represented฀at฀the฀Wenner-Gren฀symposium).฀And฀that฀leads฀one฀to฀question฀ whether฀the฀term฀“native”฀is฀of฀much฀use,฀if฀any,฀in฀debating฀“world฀anthropologies”฀unless฀it฀is฀concretized,฀as฀I฀try฀to฀do฀in฀what฀follows. 6.฀ After฀ writing฀ this฀ I฀ discovered฀ that฀ there฀ is฀ a฀ professorship฀ in฀ transnational฀anthropology฀at฀Oxford฀University,฀held฀by฀Steven฀Vertovec.฀See฀his฀ recent฀book฀on฀cosmopolitanism฀(2002),฀which฀I฀have฀not฀yet฀been฀able฀to฀ consult.฀ My฀ hunch฀ is฀ that฀ this฀ new฀ specialization฀ is฀ concerned฀ more฀ with฀ transnationalism฀ as฀ an฀ object฀ of฀ study฀ than฀ with฀ transnationalism฀ as฀ a฀ characteristic฀of฀our฀discipline. 7.฀ This฀vision฀differs฀from,฀or฀at฀least฀complements,฀proposals฀to฀“institutionalize”฀ international฀ anthropology฀ that฀ were฀ discussed฀ at฀ a฀ forum฀ during฀ the฀2001฀meetings฀of฀the฀American฀Anthropological฀Association,฀as฀reported฀ by฀June฀Nash฀(2002).

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Index

Abaza,฀Mona฀263,฀265,฀266 Abélès,฀Marc฀116,฀125 Africa฀157–77,฀286 Africanists฀and฀their฀responsibilities฀ 176–7 agriculture฀166 colonialism฀in฀157,฀159 history฀283 new฀nation฀states฀161 Pan฀African฀Association฀of฀ Anthropologists฀(PAAA)฀158,฀171–6 policy฀shifts฀and฀years฀of฀awakening฀ 165–7 university฀system฀161–5 in฀world฀system฀158–61 agriculture฀166 Aguirre฀Beltrán,฀Gonzalo฀94,฀96,฀98,฀99,฀ 104,฀204 Akiba,฀Takashi฀35 Alma฀Ata฀Declaration฀(1978)฀166–7 Alpatov,฀Vladimir฀54 alterity฀89 structures฀of฀7 Amadiume,฀Ife฀163 American฀Anthropological฀Association฀ 29,฀38,฀173,฀205 Andeanism฀202,฀203–7 Anderson,฀Benedict฀45 Anderson,฀David฀55,฀63 Annales฀group฀144 Anthropological฀Society฀of฀Nippon฀29,฀฀ 31 anti-racism฀142–3 applied฀anthropology Japan฀42 Mexico฀94–5 Peru฀207 Archetti,฀Eduardo฀9 Argentina฀275

Arguedas,฀José฀María฀16,฀203,฀207,฀ 208–14,฀218 Arnold,฀David฀255 Asad,฀Talal฀88 Asian฀network฀of฀anthropology฀42–4 Association฀Euro–Africaine฀pour฀ l’Anthropologie฀du฀Changement฀Social฀ et฀du฀Développement฀(APAD)฀173 Association฀for฀Africanist฀Anthropology฀ (AfAA)฀173 Association฀of฀Russian฀Anthropologists฀ 62 audit฀culture฀272 Australia฀12,฀225–38 context฀225–9 native฀title฀and฀229–34 in฀the฀process฀of฀becoming฀234–6 Awedoba,฀Albert฀171 Azurmendi,฀Mikel฀151,฀152 Bailey,฀F.฀G.฀248 Balandier,฀Georges฀160 Balzer,฀Marjorie฀Mandelstam฀57 Bamako฀Initiative฀167 Barnard,฀Alan฀115 Bauman,฀Zygmunt฀285,฀286 Beals,฀Ralph฀205 Benedict,฀Ruth฀32 Bennet,฀Wendell฀206 Bernard,฀H.฀Russell฀171,฀176 Béteille,฀André฀251,฀252 Birckhead,฀Jim฀228 Blanchard,฀Marc฀122 Blyden,฀Edward฀162 Boas,฀Franz฀49,฀51,฀53,฀93 Bogoraz,฀Vladimir฀51 Bolivia฀215–16 Bonfil,฀Guillermo฀96,฀104 border฀thinking฀3

335

336

Index

Bosco,฀Joseph฀42 Brazil anthropology฀of฀nation฀building฀and฀ its฀aftermath฀262,฀263,฀264–78 colonialism฀264,฀266 modernity฀in฀269,฀270,฀271 Brazilian฀Association฀of฀Anthropology฀ 265 Brevié,฀Jules฀117 Bromberger,฀Christian฀126 Busia,฀Kofi฀160,฀164 Bykovsky,฀S.฀N.฀53 Cai฀Yuanpei฀71,฀74 Calla,฀Pamela฀219 Cameroon,฀anthropology฀in฀167–71 Cárdenas,฀Lázaro฀93 Cardoso,฀F.฀H.฀135 caste฀system฀247 center-periphery฀relationships฀116,฀239 Cernea,฀Michael฀167 Chakrabarty,฀Dipesh฀3–4,฀211–12 Chambers,฀Erve฀228 Chatterjee,฀Partha฀239,฀240 Chien,฀Chiao฀77 China,฀anthropology฀in฀10,฀11,฀69,฀84–5 foreign฀influences฀and฀local฀situations฀ 71–5 history฀69–71 image฀problem฀79–81 network฀building฀and฀institutional฀ linkages฀81–4 Taiwan฀and฀Hong฀Kong฀75–8 use฀of฀terms฀78–9 Christianity฀263,฀264 class฀220 culture-class฀dialectic฀98–103 Clifford,฀James฀119,฀120,฀121,฀122,฀284 Collier,฀John฀205 colonialism฀3,฀8,฀14–15,฀113,฀137,฀144,฀ 157,฀159,฀252 Brazil฀264,฀266 British฀118,฀240-1 French฀117–23,฀167–8 German฀167 Japanese฀31,฀33,฀34,฀44 Mexico฀92,฀98–9 Russian฀49 Spain฀134–5 consultancies,฀Australia฀227 Council฀for฀the฀Development฀of฀ Economic฀and฀Social฀Research฀in฀Africa฀ (CODESRIA)฀171,฀172

Council฀on฀Sociology฀and฀Anthropology฀ in฀Africa฀(CASA)฀171 crises฀in฀anthropology฀89,฀183 Croker฀Island฀native฀title฀case฀(Australia)฀ 234 Cuba฀204 culture฀184–6,฀192,฀207,฀285 Brazil฀272 culture-class฀dialectic฀98–103 interculturality฀5,฀16 interculturalidad฀202,฀203,฀214–18 multiculturalism฀5,฀16,฀103,฀185 Curr,฀E.฀M.฀232 DaMatta,฀Roberto฀130 Das,฀Veena฀239 Davidson,฀Basil฀159 de฀la฀Cadena,฀Marisol฀10 Degregori,฀Carlos฀Iván฀201 Delafosse,฀Maurice฀118 democracy฀in฀Mexico฀105 dependency฀theory฀95,฀105–6,฀207,฀208,฀ 209 development฀anthropology฀18,฀20 Dias฀Duarte,฀Luiz฀Fernando฀131 Dieterlen,฀Germaine฀119 Diop,฀Cheik฀Anta฀160 disciplinary฀transformations฀6–9 diversity,฀anthropologies฀and฀2–6 Dogon฀people฀119–20 Dumont,฀Louis฀115,฀116,฀123–31,฀242–3,฀ 245,฀246–9 Durkheim,฀Emile฀114,฀115,฀116 Dussel,฀Enrique฀3 Eades,฀Jerry฀37,฀38,฀42,฀44 Economic฀Commission฀for฀Africa฀(ECA)฀ 167 economic฀development African฀socialism฀162,฀163 industrial฀development฀163 structural฀adjustment฀programmes฀163 economics฀192 Ecuador฀215,฀216,฀217 education฀186 see฀also฀universities Egami,฀Namio฀33 Eichelman,฀D.฀F.฀45 epistemology฀15,฀133–4 Arguedas฀as฀an฀unthinkable฀ epistemological฀revolution฀208–14 barriers฀to฀real฀engagement฀143–7 passionate฀137–41

Index฀ ฀ 337 Eriksen,฀Thomas฀H.฀114 Escobar,฀Alberto฀212 Escobar,฀Arturo฀228 Esquit,฀Edgar฀216 ethical฀codes,฀anthropological฀research฀ and฀61–2 Eurocentrism฀3–4,฀7,฀14–15 European฀Association฀of฀Social฀ Anthropologists฀29,฀44 evolutionary฀theories฀100,฀104 Fabian,฀Johannes฀143,฀202 feminism฀8,฀190 Finland฀190 Firth,฀Raymond฀40 Forstein,฀Alexander฀53 Foucault,฀Michel฀141–2,฀197 Fox,฀Richard฀45 France,฀anthropology฀in฀114–17,฀159,฀ 160-1,฀164,฀165 ambiguities฀and฀contradictions฀131–2 colonial฀period฀117–23 Dumont฀and฀115,฀116,฀123–31 La฀Tarasque฀123–7 ramifications฀127–31 French฀Institute฀of฀Black฀Africa฀(IFAN)฀ 117,฀160 Freyre,฀Gilberto฀264 Gal,฀Susan฀49,฀58–9 Gamio,฀Manuel฀93,฀103,฀205 Ganay,฀Solange฀de฀119 Gandhi,฀Mahatma฀244,฀245,฀250 García฀Canclini,฀Néstor฀5 Geertz,฀Clifford฀19,฀207 genealogy฀141 geopolitics฀of฀knowledge฀3 Gerholm,฀Thomas฀2,฀43 Germany฀56,฀190 colonialism฀167 Gilroy,฀Paul฀185 globalization฀1,฀2,฀36,฀88–9,฀227,฀274 India฀and฀256–8 Godelier,฀Maurice฀207 Gough,฀Kathleen฀148 Grace,฀Jocelyn฀228 Gramsci,฀Antonio฀140-1 Griaule,฀Marcel฀119,฀120,฀121 Guldin,฀Gregory฀69,฀74 Gupta,฀K.฀P.฀249 Hagan,฀George฀171 Haiti฀209

Hall,฀Stuart฀185 Hamel,฀Rainer฀Enrique฀14 Hannerz,฀Ulf฀43 Harvey,฀Penny฀193,฀197,฀198 hegemonic฀anthropologies฀5,฀6,฀7,฀10,฀11,฀ 14,฀15,฀105 hegemonic฀language฀13–14 Helimskii,฀Evgenii฀63 Herzfeld,฀Michael฀135–7,฀152 heterogeneity฀6 Hill,฀Stephen฀227 history฀114,฀284 Africa฀283 anthropologies฀without฀5,฀19 Chinese฀anthropology฀69–71 Japanese฀anthropology฀30-4 Hobsbawm,฀Eric฀210 Hong฀Kong,฀anthropology฀in฀75–8 Horton,฀James฀Africanus฀Beale฀162 Humphrey,฀Caroline฀57 identity,฀politics฀of฀184 immigration,฀Spain฀149–51 India฀239–58 diaspora฀256–7 Emergency฀period฀253,฀254–6 globalization฀256–8 Lucknow฀school฀243–6 indigenous฀anthropology฀7,฀10,฀202–3,฀ 205 anthropology฀of฀nation฀building฀in฀the฀ tropics฀and฀its฀aftermath฀261–78 Arguedas฀as฀an฀unthinkable฀ epistemological฀revolution฀208–14 indigenous฀politics฀and฀end฀of฀ mestizaje฀214–18 Mexico฀87–8,฀93–107 native฀title฀in฀Australia฀229–34 Yorta฀Yorta฀claim฀231–4 industrial฀development฀163 inequalities,฀social฀90 Institut฀Français฀pour฀l’Afrique฀Noire฀ (IFAN)฀117,฀160 Institute฀of฀Cultural฀Anthropology฀ (Uganda)฀162 Institute฀of฀Development฀Research฀ (France)฀117 Institute฀of฀Ethnology฀(France)฀117 Instituto฀de฀Etnología฀y฀Arquelogía฀(Peru)฀ 206 Instituto฀Indigenista฀Interamericano฀206 interactive฀anthropology฀43,฀44–6 Inter-American฀Indian฀Institute฀93

338

Index

interculturality฀5,฀16 interculturalidad฀202,฀203,฀214–18 International฀Africa฀Institute฀118 International฀Institute฀of฀African฀ Languages฀and฀Culture฀(IIALC)฀159 International฀Labour฀Organization฀(ILO)฀ 96 International฀Union฀of฀Anthropological฀ and฀Ethnological฀Sciences฀(IUAES)฀70,฀ 171 internationalization฀see฀transnationalism฀ and฀internationalism Internet฀288–9 Ishida,฀Eiichiro฀33 Islam฀263,฀264 Izumi,฀Seiichi฀35 Japan,฀anthropology฀in฀9–10,฀29–30,฀฀ 46–7 in฀anthropology฀academic฀world฀ system฀36–9 applied฀42 Asian฀network฀of฀anthropology฀42–4 contemporary฀39–42 history฀30-4 influence฀on฀China฀71 interactive฀43,฀44–6 internationalization฀41 matrix฀of฀teaching฀40 nationality฀and฀transnationality฀in฀ 34–6 niche฀39–40 pluralization฀41 Japanese฀Institute฀of฀Ethnic฀Research฀฀ 32 Japanese฀Society฀of฀Cultural฀ Anthropology฀29 Japanese฀Society฀of฀Ethnology฀31–2,฀34,฀ 35,฀38,฀39,฀45 Japanese฀Society฀of฀Folklore฀Studies฀32 Jesup฀North฀Pacific฀Expedition฀(JNPE)฀ 49,฀51 Jochelson,฀Vladimir฀51 Johnson,฀James฀162 Joshi,฀P.฀C.฀244 Kantowsky,฀D.฀248 Kastren,฀Mattias฀50 Kaviraj,฀S.฀145,฀146,฀152 Keen,฀Ian฀230 Kelly,฀William฀42 Kenya,฀anthropology฀in฀170 Kenyatta,฀Jomo฀160,฀164 Kilbride,฀Philip฀170

knowledge coloniality฀of฀3,฀15 as฀dialogic฀relationship฀214–16 generation฀of฀nontrivial฀knowledge฀in฀ awkward฀situations฀181–98 anthropologizing฀ourselves฀193–8 culture,฀information฀and฀the฀ changing฀role฀of฀academia฀182–8 ethnography฀and฀persuasivenesss฀ 188–93 native฀title฀in฀Australia฀and฀235–6 production฀of฀knowledge฀141–3,฀ 201–21 Kothari,฀Rajni฀255 Kottak,฀Conrad฀174 Krota,฀Esteban฀5,฀7,฀8 Kuhn,฀Thomas฀273 Kuper,฀Adam฀46,฀171 Kuwayama,฀Takami฀2–3,฀36,฀38,฀43,฀45–6 Kwang-Ok,฀Kim฀42 Labouret,฀Henri฀118 language barriers฀3,฀37,฀83,฀149 hegemonic฀13–14 Latour,฀Bruno฀197,฀276 Layton,฀Robert฀115 Leiris,฀Michel฀17,฀119,฀120-3 L’Estoile,฀Benoît฀de฀117 Lévi-Strauss,฀Claude฀115,฀116,฀123,฀125,฀ 207,฀246,฀268 Lévy-Bruhl,฀Lucien฀117,฀121 Li฀Fanggui฀73 Liang฀Zhaotao฀74 Lienhardt,฀Godfrey฀160 Lin฀Huixiang฀73 Llobera,฀Josep฀136 Lombard,฀Jacques฀160 Lucknow฀school฀243–6 Mabo฀case฀(Australia)฀229–30 Mabuchi,฀Toichi฀35 Madan,฀T.฀N.฀247 Mafeje,฀Archie฀8,฀15,฀20 Maidel,฀Gerhard฀50 Malinowski,฀Bronislaw฀35,฀161,฀204 Marcus,฀George฀284 Marr,฀N.฀I.฀52 Martín,฀Emma฀151 Marxism฀8,฀75,฀160,฀163–4,฀207,฀208,฀ 244–5,฀292–3 French฀anthropology฀and฀115 Mexican฀anthropology฀and฀95,฀98,฀ 99–100

Index฀ ฀ 339 Mathews,฀Gordon฀37,฀44 Matorin,฀N.฀M.฀54 Mauss,฀Marcel฀114,฀115,฀116,฀121 Maybury-Lewis,฀David฀45 Meillassoux,฀Claude฀120,฀160 Melhuus,฀Marit฀128–9 mestizaje฀202,฀205,฀206–7,฀212 indigenous฀politics฀and฀end฀of฀ mestizaje฀214–18 Mexico,฀anthropology฀in฀10,฀87–8,฀204,฀ 206 applied฀anthropology฀94–5 conception฀and฀treatment฀of฀internal฀ ‘others’฀92–7 constituting฀factors฀88–92 culture-class฀dialectic฀98–103 identity฀of฀103–6 Mignolo,฀Walter฀3 Mission฀du฀Patrimoine฀Ethnologique฀ (France)฀126 modernity฀15–16,฀17,฀148,฀189,฀192,฀196,฀ 197,฀208 Brazil฀269,฀270,฀271 India฀and฀249–51 modernization฀theory฀161,฀165–6,฀206 secularization฀and฀263–4 Moore,฀Philip฀228 Moreno,฀Isidoro฀134,฀135,฀136,฀137,฀139,฀ 140,฀147,฀151 Morse,฀Edward฀30 Mukherjee,฀D.฀N.฀243 Mukherjee,฀D.฀P.฀243,฀244–6 Mukherjee,฀Radhakamal฀243–4 multiculturalism฀5,฀16,฀103,฀185,฀220 see฀also฀interculturality Murra,฀John฀Victor฀204,฀207 Nader,฀Laura฀189 Nakane,฀Chie฀29 Nandy,฀Ashis฀255 Narayan,฀Kirin฀10,฀39 nation฀states฀89,฀287 Africa฀161 anthropology฀of฀nation฀building฀in฀the฀ tropics฀and฀its฀aftermath฀261–78 National฀Commission฀for฀the฀ Development฀of฀the฀Indigenous฀ Peoples฀(Mexico;฀CDI)฀91 National฀Indigenist฀Institute฀(Mexico)฀93 National฀Institute฀of฀Anthropology฀and฀ History฀(Mexico;฀INAH)฀91,฀93,฀98 National฀Museum฀of฀Natural฀History,฀ Archaeology฀and฀History฀(Mexico)฀98

National฀School฀of฀Anthropology฀and฀ History฀(Mexico;฀ENAH)฀93 nationalism฀32,฀53,฀113 native฀title฀in฀Australia฀229–34 Yorta฀Yorta฀claim฀231–4 neoliberalism฀101–2,฀186 Netherlands,฀anthropology฀in฀34 networks Asian฀network฀of฀anthropology฀42–4 Chinese฀anthropology฀81–4 indigenous฀intellectuals฀202–3 Inter-American฀hub฀of฀Peruvian฀ anthropology฀202,฀203–7 responsibility฀and฀communication฀in฀ 147–52 Nielsen,฀Finn฀S.฀114 Nkrumah,฀Kwame฀162 North฀American฀Free฀Trade฀Agreement฀ (NAFTA)฀97 objectivity฀147 observation,฀participant฀147,฀148 Oka,฀Masao฀35 Olney,฀Justice฀231–2 Organisation฀de฀Recherche฀Scientifique฀ et฀Technique฀d’Outre฀Mer฀(ORSTOM)฀ 160,฀164–5 Organization฀of฀African฀Unity฀(OAU)฀167 Ortiz,฀Fernando฀204 Ortiz,฀Renato฀13 ‘others,’฀conception฀and฀treatment฀of฀ internal฀‘others’฀92–7 Palerm,฀Ángel฀204 Pan฀African฀Association฀of฀ Anthropologists฀(PAAA)฀158,฀171–6 participant฀observation฀147,฀148 pastoralism฀49,฀59 Patel,฀Sujata฀253 Patten,฀Rochelle฀233 Patterson,฀Thomas฀114 peripheral฀anthropologies฀114 see฀also฀colonialism;฀indigenous฀ anthropology persuasiveness฀188–93 Peru฀10,฀201–21 Andeanism฀202,฀203–7 Arguedas฀as฀an฀unthinkable฀ epistemological฀revolution฀208–14 Inter-American฀hub฀203–7 interculturalidad฀202,฀203,฀214–18 knowledge฀as฀dialogic฀relationship฀ 214–18

340

Index

pictography฀277 Pina฀Cabral,฀João฀de฀12 Pitt,฀David฀166 Pitt-Rivers,฀Julian฀A.฀137,฀138,฀139 pluralism฀17,฀215 Japanese฀anthropology฀41 Pocock,฀David฀243,฀247,฀248 Pokrovskii,฀N.฀M.฀52,฀53 politics of฀identity฀184 political฀engagement฀141–3,฀148 postcolonialism฀190 postmodernism฀8,฀144,฀145 poverty,฀alleviation฀of฀163 power฀relations฀in฀academic฀system฀38 Prakash,฀G.฀144,฀255 provincialization฀12–13 ‘provincialization฀of฀Europe’฀project฀ 3–4,฀211–12 Quijano,฀Aníbal฀3,฀202,฀210,฀211,฀212 Rabinow,฀Paul฀267–9,฀270 racism฀142–3 Brazil฀268 radical฀anthropology฀7 Radin,฀Paul฀205 Radlov,฀Vladimir฀50 Ramanujan,฀A.฀K.฀249 Ramos,฀Alcida฀23 realism,฀world฀anthropologies฀and฀152–4 rejectionist฀syndrome฀163 responsibility,฀in฀networks฀147–52 Ricoeur,฀Paul฀23 Rorty,฀Richard฀262,฀271 Rudie,฀Ingrid฀129 Russia฀9,฀11,฀52–6 Siberian฀anthropology฀49–50 cultural฀anthropologists฀in฀an฀ ethnographic฀field฀56–60 current฀changes฀in฀research฀ paradigms฀60-2 current฀situation฀62–5 as฀international฀enterprise฀50-2 Soviet฀period฀51,฀52–60 Russian฀Geographical฀Society฀51 Saberwal,฀Satish฀248–9 Sahlins,฀Marshall฀45 Salomon,฀Frank฀206 Saran,฀A.฀K.฀245,฀249–51 Sarkar,฀Sumit฀145–6,฀147 Schackt,฀Jon฀129

Schwartz,฀Roberto฀266 scientific฀knowledge฀89 secularization฀263–4 Sekimoto,฀Teruo฀33 Shimizu,฀Akitoshi฀29,฀35 Shiratori,฀Kurakichi฀32 Shirokogorov,฀S.฀M.฀55 Shnirelman,฀Victor฀53,฀54 Siberian฀anthropology฀49–50 cultural฀anthropologists฀in฀an฀ ethnographic฀field฀56–60 current฀changes฀in฀research฀paradigms฀ 60-2 current฀situation฀62–5 as฀international฀enterprise฀50-2 Soviet฀period฀51,฀52–60 slavery฀158–9,฀268 Slezkine,฀Yuri฀55 social฀engineering฀148 social฀inequalities฀90 Social฀Science฀Research฀Council฀(SSRC)฀ 205 South฀Africa,฀anthropology฀in฀164 Spain,฀anthropology฀in฀134–7,฀149–51 Spencer,฀Jonathan฀183 Srinivas,฀M.฀N.฀251–2,฀253 Stalin,฀Josef฀53,฀54 Starn,฀Orin฀207 Stauth,฀Georg฀263,฀265,฀266 Sternberg,฀Leo฀51,฀52 Steward,฀Julian฀206 Stocking,฀George฀W.฀116,฀261–2,฀273 Stoler,฀Ann฀Laura฀142 Strathern,฀Marilyn฀196,฀197 structural฀adjustment฀programmes฀163 structuralism฀34 subaltern฀studies฀144,฀145 Sugiura,฀Kenichi฀35 Taiwan,฀anthropology฀in฀75–8 Tambiah,฀Stanley฀45 Taussig,฀Michael฀138,฀139,฀152 Tauxier,฀Louis฀118 Taylor,฀Jim฀228 Tello,฀Julio฀C.฀205 temporalization฀284–6 Terradas,฀Ignasi฀153–4 terrorism฀192 Testart,฀Alain฀127 Thatcher,฀Margaret฀195 theory,฀point฀of฀285 Toledo,฀Alejandro฀220 Torii,฀Ryuzo฀31,฀34,฀35

Index฀ ฀ 341 transnationalism฀and฀internationalism฀ 9–11,฀114–15 Chinese฀anthropology฀81–4 globalization฀1,฀2,฀36,฀88–9 Japanese฀anthropology฀and฀35–6,฀41 Siberian฀anthropology฀50-2 Trigger,฀David฀234 tristesse฀269 Trouillot,฀Michel฀Rolph฀209 Tsuboi,฀Shogoro฀30,฀31,฀35 Turner,฀Victor฀40,฀115 Turpin,฀Tim฀227

van฀Gennep,฀Arnold฀114,฀115,฀125 van฀Willigen,฀John฀228 Vargas฀Llosa,฀Álvaro฀220 Vargas฀Llosa,฀Mario฀220 Velho,฀Gilberto฀130-1 Velho,฀Otávio฀15 Vitebsky,฀Piers฀57 von฀Ditmar,฀Karl฀50

Uberoi,฀J.฀P.฀S.฀248 Uchibori,฀Motomitsu฀38 Unger,฀Roberto฀Mangabeira฀262 United฀Kingdom฀113,฀159,฀161,฀181 anthropologizing฀ourselves฀193–8 colonialism฀118,฀240-1 culture,฀information฀and฀the฀changing฀ role฀of฀academia฀182–8 ethnography฀and฀persuasivenesss฀ 188–93 United฀States฀of฀America฀251–2 Andeanism฀and฀207 anthropology฀in฀36,฀114,฀138 influence฀on฀Mexico฀90 Universal฀Exhibition฀(1992)฀193 universities Africa฀161–5 Australia฀227 changing฀role฀of฀academia฀182–8 Utsushiwaka,฀Inezo฀35

Weber,฀Max฀249,฀263 Whitman,฀Walt฀262 Williams,฀Raymond฀133,฀148 Wolf,฀Eric฀207 world฀anthropologies฀1–2,฀23–4 anthropology฀today฀and฀17–23 changing฀world฀systems฀2–6 disciplinary฀transformations฀6–9 epistemological฀and฀disciplinary฀ predicaments฀14–17 Japanese฀anthropology฀and฀36–9 questions฀281–95 how฀291–2 what฀289–90 when฀284–6 where฀286–9 who฀282–4 realist฀proposal฀152–4 responsibility฀and฀communication฀in฀ 147–52 transnationalism฀9–11 uneven฀relations฀11–14 World฀Bank฀166 Wu฀Wenzao฀73

Valcárcel,฀Luis฀E.฀205 van฀Beek,฀Walter฀120 van฀Bremen,฀Jan฀35,฀36

Yamashita,฀Shinji฀11 Yanagita,฀Kunio฀32 Yorta฀Yorta฀case฀(Australia)฀231–4